Saltwater nose drops can reduce the length of a kid's cold by two days, a new study demonstrates.
"We found that children using saltwater nose drops had cold symptoms for an average of six days, where those with usual care had symptoms for eight days," said researcher Dr. Steve Cunningham, a professor of pediatric respiratory medicine with the University of Edinburgh in Britain.
He added that the children who took the drops also “needed fewer medicines” - and their colds were shown to spread less to other family members.
The common cold is relatively innocuous for most people, but with kids contracting several of these viruses each year, parents could certainly use a way to help little ones feel better. And it looks like the European Respiratory Society’s new study on saltwater nose drops could be the solution.
Parents administered three drops per nostril a minimum of four times per day, using a saltwater solution they made at home with sea salt, researchers said. Not only did the kids get better more quickly with saltwater drops, but colds also tended to spread less to other family members. About 46 percent of those families had other members catch a cold, versus 61 percent of families whose kids received usual care.
Researchers found that saltwater drops can reduce the length of a child’s cold by two days. Unlike most other over-the-counter remedies, this treatment could actually accelerate the recovery period, rather than just soothe symptoms.
About 82 percent of parents involved in the study said the saline nose drops helped their child get better faster, and the same number plan to implement the treatment in the future, indicating that it could be a useful tool for making colds a bit more manageable.
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