For prevention and early treatment of COVID and other viruses, one of the best things we can do is treat the area that the viruses come in and hang out: the nose and throat. Gargling is one way to get to the throat, while a spray will take care of the nose and behind, where the nose and throat meet. This effective method has been shown to reduce PCR positivity and shorten the duration of illness.
There are many options for what anti-viral/microbial agent to use use. Solutions of Betadine (povidone-iodine 1%) and hydrogen peroxide (3%) are highly effective. Grapefruit seed extract has anti-viral and anti-microbial effects, as do many essential oils, like the ones used in Listerine. Obviously, Listerine is great for gargling, but not so great for spraying up one’s nose. Xlear Nasal Spray contains grapefruit seed extract.
The goal is to decontaminate the nose and throat to reduce the viral load that your body has to deal with, and to reduce the transmission of the virus.
2 teaspoons Betadine in 6 ounces of water
Use nasal spray or syringe bulb and spray up nose – snort it to back of throat and then spit it out.
Gargle the rest of the Betadine solution, spit it out – do not swallow.
Finish with Listerine gargle
This method is recommended for early stages of COVID or flu, or if nasal symptoms continue. This can be done up to every 4 hours while you are awake.
This is also recommended after being in contact with people suspected of having COVID – or after a day out around a lot of people, especially close contact in small rooms. This method is being used in other parts of the world and reporting good success.
Neti pot with salt water unfortunately did not prove to be effective for treating viruses in the nose; in fact it was only marginally more effective than just water in a neti pot. Using a neti pot with Betadine solution instead of a nasal spray is an option for this method.
To learn more about Anti-viral effects of gargling, check out my blog post Gargling with Antiseptic Mouthwash Kills Viruses.