Sinus Irrigation, Herbs, Cleaning the Air

Items needed for Sinus Irrigation:

17 ounces (510cc) of reverse-osmosis water, distilled water or spring water

1/2 teaspoon of Celtic Sea Salt or Morton’s Natural Sea Salt

1 drop of 2% Lugol’s Iodine Solution (should build by 1 drop each sinus irrigation to 24 drops of 2% Lugol’s iodine total in each 2-cup irrigant)

A 3-oz.rubber bulb-type nasal irrigation syringe (with tip cut off to fit into client’s nose) or a Sinugator or a SinuPulse Traveler

 Sinus Irrigation Procedure:

Put the water and the salt in a pot to be boiled on the stove-top and stir it to get the salt to dissolve, then boil it for 5 minutes at a low rumbling boil with a lid on the top (to reduce water loss via steam). Let this warm saline solution cool to the temperature of the skin in the axilla (armpit) so that it does not burn when used. Before adding the Lugol’s Iodine Solution to the sinus irrigant, put one drop of it on the skin of the forearm to make sure it does not cause redness or swelling or itch or rash on the skin (signs of possible allergic reaction). Don’t add the Lugol’s Iodine Solution to the saline on the first day, but start adding it on day 2 (as long as there is no sign of allergic reaction). Each time, add the Lugol’s iodine to the saline after it cools to body temperature and start increasing the number of drops of Lugol’s added to the saline each day up to about 24 drops in the 2 cups of saline irrigant. Boiling often evaporates about 1 ounce (30cc) but half of the remaining sterile saline will be used in each nostril (about 240cc in each nostril).

 Whether you use the bulb syringe or Sinugator or SinuPulse Traveler (battery-operated devices similar to a Water-Pic, which can be purchased online), the client’s forehead needs to be lower than their chin with their face over the sink or bathtub or shower. Have the client take a deep breath, hold their breath, then, with the bulb syringe or Sinugator or SinuPulse pressed snugly into the right nostril, force the saline water into that nostril until water flows into the back of the throat. Take the bulb syringe or Sinugator/Sinupulse out of the nostril and let the saline water run into the sink, tub or shower. Then do the same procedure on the left nostril. Keep going back and forth from one nostril to the other until all the saline is used.

If the nose is very congested (as from allergies making air exchange thru the nostrils difficult), about 15 to 20 minutes before starting the saline irrigation, consider spraying 3-4 sprays of OTC Fluticasone into each nostril while breathing in as deeply as possible. This can shrink the swollen mucosa in the nose and around the ostia of each sinus.

 Irrigating the sinuses as described above can be messy and alternatively, may be done in a shower or bathtub while naked or with a bathing suit on. You need to do this procedure once daily every day for 10 weeks unless instructed otherwise. After irrigating with only saline for a day, if there is no allergy to iodine, you can add 1 drop of Lugol’s iodine to the approximate 16 ounces (480cc) of saline water after it is cooled to body temperature from boiling. Iodine will often cause a little stinging/burning in the nose or sinuses. With every irrigation, an additional 1 drop of Lugol’s iodine can be added to the saline to irrigate the nose and sinuses, up to 24 drops of 2% Lugol’s iodine in every 16 ounces of sinus irrigant.

 Sinus irrigation will NOT likely be effective in removing fungus from the body unless also taking antifungal herbs twice daily for 10+ weeks and eating only a ketogenic-like diet (see separate “Antifungal Ketogenic Diet” instructions) AND only if breathing air that has had fungi removed from it. The air is cleaned by stopping the moisture that feeds the fungus, then sufficiently remediating the contaminated building materials and by using a device to clean residual mold and mycotoxins from the air (see the section below).

Ozonated Glycerin Nasal Drops (instead of saline sinus irrigation)

For those patients who cannot do saline sinus irrigation for various reasons, the following can be tried every OTHER day during the 10 weeks of Ketogenic-like diet and antifungal herbs. One can buy a 4-ounce bottle of Ozonated Glycerin from SimplyO3.com and it should be kept in the refrigerator or even the freezer to maintain freshness. To make a 10% solution of Ozonated Glycerin which can be dropped into the nose, 20 cc of sterile saline is placed in a 1-ounce dropper bottle (with a sterile syringe) and 2.2cc of Ozonated Glycerin is added to the saline with the same sterile syringe. The lid is placed on the dropper bottle and it is shaken vigorously for at least one minute. The 10% ozonated glycerin (10% OG) should be kept in the refrigerator after it is made to maintain effectiveness.

With the patient lying on their back with their neck at the edge of the bed, their head tilted back as far as possible and their nostrils both pointing toward the ceiling, 5-6 drops of 10% OG are put into each nostril (in the right nostril with their head also turned to the right about 10-20 degrees, then in the left nostril with their head turned to the left about 10-20 degrees). If the ALS patient can keep their head tilted back for about 2 minutes, some of the 10% ozonated glycerin will go into the ostia of the sinuses. If the nasal mucosae are congested, about 15 minutes prior to trying to put 10% ozonated glycerin into the nose, you could spray 3-4 sprays of Fluticasone into each nostril to shrink the mucosae (so that the ozonated glycerin will go into the ostia of the sinuses more easily).

 Antifungal Herbs:

After all water leaks are resolved which would grow fungi, and the mold/fungi have been removed from the home, workplace or other places where the patient spends time regularly, in order to clear fungi from the sinuses, gut & body, one must remain faithfully on a ketogenic-like diet for 10weeks (see separate “Antifungal Ketogenic Diet” instructions). In addition to doing once daily sinus treatment, the patient must take an effective herbal antifungal twice daily for the same 10 weeks. The antifungal herbs, Nutramedix Cumanda or Nutramedix Tangarana (+/- PauD’Arco ethanolic tincture from other companies) can be taken for the entire 10 weeks or can be rotated if there is concern about developing allergies to the herbs. The usual dose is 40-60drops of one or two of these herbs 2x/day.

Devices to Remove Mold & Mycotoxins from the Air:

The least expensive (but effective) device to remove mold & mycotoxins from the air of a home or workplace is an ozone generator with a timer that automatically turns it off after 5 hours. These ozone generators are about $40 on Amazon. ALL people, animals & plants must be removed from the building to be ozonated for the entire 5 hours while it is running PLUS 2-3 hours after it automatically shuts off. It is best to open a couple of windows after returning to the building post-ozonation. The best place to position the ozone generator is near an HVAC air return duct while the HVAC is only in fan-mode (and not heat or cool). Do NOT run the ozone generator or any of the following devices until ALL water leaks/moisture sources have been resolved and the necessary remediation of mold-contaminate building materials has been completed and verified with REPEAT mold-plate testing!!!

The next least expensive device to clean the air post-remediation is Biobalancenow.com HavenMist ($39 per pint for each 1000sq.ft of space in the home) in a Hurricane 1000 hot-fogger (~$130 on Amazon). Takes 1-2 hours to fog the whole home & should repeat fogging every 6-8 weeks. Best to move the fogger from room to room, sometimes directing the fog into the air conditioner return vent WHILE the HVAC is in fan-mode only (no heat or cold).

Triad Aer V3 plugs in and runs continuously (~$1300 for up to 3000sq.ft home all on one level). Put it on a rolling cart & move it from room to room (preferably use in a room without people in it even though most people can be in the same room with it without problems).

HiTech Air Solutions 101 (~$2000 plus $140 for replacement filters & UV bulbs every 6-12 months) is a hydroxyl generator which should run continuously but probably best NOT to run it in the same room where an ALS patient is. Excess hydroxyl radicals can only be quenched by molecular hydrogen which should be produced by healthy gut microbial flora. However, many ALS patients have gut dysbiosis and do not produce enough molecular hydrogen. Therefore, hydroxyl generators should probably be on a rolling cart that can be moved from room to room. The product website claims each 101 device is sufficient to purify the air of mold & mycotoxins for living spaces less than 1500 square feet all on one level.