What Causes Sinus Problems
Sinus pain and pressure happens when the tissue in your nose and sinuses gets swollen and inflamed. That keeps the sinuses from draining properly. A change in temperature, allergies, smoking, the common cold — pretty much anything that causes swelling in your sinuses or keeps your cilia from sweeping away mucus — can cause problems.
How Do I Prevent Acute Sinusitis
Do not smoke. Smoking is not good for you or for people around you, since this can cause mucous to become clogged in the nose/sinuses. Avoid being around second-hand smoke, as well as other triggers like animal dander, dust, mold and pollen. Take pains to prevent sinus and other infections by:
- Washing your hands well before and after eating and after using the bathroom.
- Staying away from sick people.
- Treating your allergies, possibly with nasal steroid therapy or immunotherapy .
- Keeping your body and your immune system in good shape by eating well and staying hydrated.
- Using a humidifier if your house is dry or an air purifier. Make sure to clean your equipment regularly.
- Irrigating your nose when necessary with a saline rinse.
Revamp Your Nighttime Routine To Open Sinuses
As anyone with stuffy sinuses can attest, congestion often feels worse at night. This can create a vicious cycle because you need lots of rest to get over a cold or the flu, but the difficulty you have breathing at night can make it hard to sleep. The solution is to help your body stay as congestion-free as possible while you sleep.
For starters, put an extra pillow or two under your head, as this will help drain your sinuses. Make sure your bedroom climate is humid, and run a humidifier while you sleep to further thin the mucus in your nose. For another natural remedy, try nasal breathing strips, which lift the sides of the nose to help open nasal passages.
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How Is Sinus Infection Diagnosed
Diagnosis depends on symptoms and requires an examination of the throat, nose and sinuses. Your allergist will look for:
- Redness
- Discolored nasal discharge
- Bad Breath
If your sinus infection lasts longer than eight weeks, or if standard antibiotic treatment is not working, a sinus CT scan may help your allergist diagnose the problem. Your allergist may examine your nose or sinus openings. The exam uses a long, thin, flexible tube with a tiny camera and a light at one end that is inserted through the nose. It is not painful. Your allergist may give you a light anesthetic nasal spray to make you more comfortable.
Mucus cultures: If your sinus infection is chronic or has not improved after several rounds of antibiotics, a mucus culture may help to determine what is causing the infection. Most mucus samples are taken from the nose. However, it is sometimes necessary to get mucus directly from the sinuses.
Knowing what kind of bacteria is causing the infection can lead to more effective antibiotic therapy. A fungus could also cause your sinus infection. Confirming the presence of fungus is important. Fungal sinus infection needs to be treated with antifungal agents, rather than antibiotics. In addition, some forms of fungal sinus infection allergic fungal sinus infection, for example do not respond to antifungal agents and often require the use of oral steroids.
When To See A Doctor
Congestion can make it difficult to breathe, sleep, and even eat. If youre having trouble functioning even after trying natural remedies, youll want to pay a visit to your doctor. Its also important to see a doctor if you notice other symptoms, such as:
- congestion that lasts longer than a week
- trouble breathing
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Natural Remedies For Sinus Infections
1. Top Foods & Beverages for Sinus Infections
2. Foods & Beverages to Avoid
3. Oil of Oregano
4. Grapefruit seed extract
5. Vitamin C
6. Garlic
7. Echinacea
8. Neti Pot
9. Add Moisture
10. Essential Oils
Sinus Infection: Signs & Symptoms + 10 Natural Remedies
About 35 million Americans suffer from a sinus infection or sinusitis every year. Sinusitis is an inflammation, or swelling, of the tissue lining the sinuses that leads to an infection. It can result in mucus build-up and pain. If youve ever experienced a sinus infection, then you know just how unpleasant it can be much worse than a stuffy nose. While in most cases, a sinus infection will simply leave you running to find a decongestant, in the worst cases, it can lead to surgery to remove an abscess that has developed or the obstruction of the sinuses.
In the United States, sinusitis is the fifth most common medical diagnosis for which antibiotics are prescribed these days. The management of acute and chronic sinusitis is also costing this country over $11 billion every year. That doesnt even include the economic impact of lost work time due to illness.
While antibioticsfor sinus infection are a very common conventional treatment, the majority of sinus infections are actually the result of colds or viruses. They will get better as your nasal congestion improves.
Thankfully, there are a lot of natural ways to treat a sinus infection, including the foods you eat , saline nasal sprays, essential oils and supplements scientifically proven to be an effective sinus infection home remedy.
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What To Do For Sinus Pressure And Pain At Home
Here are the top 10 at-hometreatments to help ease your sinus pain and inflammation to get rid of your sinus infection faster.
What Vitamins Are Good For The Respiratory System
- Vitamin E is important for immunity, and has been shown to reduce allergic airway inflammation and improve pulmonary function. In the Womens Health Study of 38,597 women, the risk of developing chronic lung disease was reduced by 10 percent in women using vitamin E supplements.
- Vitamin C, a powerful antioxidant, has been linked to asthma prevention studies also show increased vitamin C can reduce wheezing, improve lung function, and protect against bronchitis and sinusitis.
- Flavonoids, a group of antioxidants found in many fruits, vegetables, coffees, and teas, have anti-inflammatory properties and can reduce the prevalence and severity of asthma and allergies. Pycnogenol, a supplement that contains a mixture of flavonoids, can be especially effective, and has been shown to increase lung function and improve breathing.
- Vitamin D protects against respiratory infections and sinusitis, and low levels of vitamin D have been shown to impair normal lung function and exacerbate symptoms of asthma.
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Consider Some Alternatives To The Pharmacy
When youre congested, the simple act of breathing can be a challenge. Whatever the cause a sinus infection, allergies, a cold, or the flu dealing with congestion can leave you feeling tired and dreary.
Whats happening inside your head when you have nasal congestion? The nose has a vast network of blood vessels with valves that open and close, says Scott P. Stringer, MD, professor and chairman of otolaryngology and communication sciences at the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson. When the nose is stimulated by any irritant, the nervous system is also stimulated, causing valves to open, which results in more blood entering the nose. This causes swelling in your nasal passages, which makes it difficult to breathe.”
Since sinus infections, colds, and allergies don’t just leave you congested and often come with a host of other symptoms, you might contemplate taking one or several drugs to end the misery. Yet doubling or tripling up on medication types is dangerous, and you may not find the relief you seek with over-the-counter meds or through a prescription.
Although over-the-counter options, such as , are often used to treat the stuffiness and headache caused by congestion, there’s significant risk of becoming dependent on these drugs, and they can leave you worse off in other ways, too.
When To See A Doctor For Sinus Pain
If your sinus symptoms are not getting better with at-home treatments, and if your sinus symptoms last longer than seven to 10 days, you should see a doctor for treatment. Allina Health has many convenient care options for care, from online visits to walk-in care, to help you get better fast.
If you have frequent or reoccurring sinus infections, you may want to see an ear, nose and throat for your treatment options.
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Free Breathe Now Sinus Relief Supplement
Breathe Easier with Breathe Nows Sinus Relief Supplement. Try it now with a free sample and free shipping. Its an all-natural, chemical-free sinus relief supplement that allows you to breathe when youre suffering from allergies, sinus infections, colds, and even the flu. Sample it on their site below.
Rinse With A Neti Pot And Saline Solution
Although these teapot-shaped devices may seem like the latest trend in alternative medicine, the neti pot is anything but new. Used for centuries by yoga and Ayurvedic practitioners in India, nasal irrigation is a gentle and effective way to clear the nasal passages of mucus and allergens. Trying any method that delivers salt water to the nose is a good way to start relieving congestion, says Stringer.
To use this natural remedy, fill the neti pot with a saline solution made of warm water and salt, then insert the spout into one nostril while you tilt your head to the other side, allowing the solution to flow up into your nasal passage and then out the other nostril. When making the saline solution, pharmaceutical grade salt is recommended.
Neti pots are generally inexpensive theyre available in health food stores for around $10 to $20 and research shows that they work well to relieve congestion. Researchers at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, who studied adults with chronic nasal and sinus problems, found that people treated with nasal irrigation had greater improvement of symptoms over two months than those treated with saline sprays.
In addition, researchers in China found that nasal irrigation with saline reduced the need for steroid sprays in children with allergies. Neti pots are safe to use on a daily basis.
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How Is Acute Sinusitis Treated
Acute sinusitis is typically a short-term condition that is not too severe. For many people, little or no treatment is needed. Most people get better on their own after seven to 10 days.
Antibiotics are only helpful for bacterial infections. Most sinusitis is due to viruses or other causes that are not cured by antibiotics.
Other treatment options include ways to manage your symptoms. You can:
- Try nasal sprays and decongestants. You should not use over-the-counter medicated nose sprays longer than three days unless your healthcare provider says you should.
- Get extra rest and drink extra fluids.
- Use over-the-counter pain relievers like acetaminophen or ibuprofen if you have significant pain.
- Irrigate your nasal passages with saline solution. Since this is just salt and sterile water applied to the nose for cleaning, you can continue longer than five days.
Natural Home Remedies For Sinus Infections
Sinusitis is a condition that impacts the daily lives of 1 in 10 of our family, friends, and neighbors in metro Washington DC, and surrounding areas. If you are one of the thousands in our community that suffer with a sinus condition, then you understand how the symptoms of sinusitis make daily life difficult. These symptoms result in countless hours of missed work/school, a loss of productivity, and impaired ability to fully enjoy all that life has to offer. Sinus sufferers struggle with symptoms such as:
- Sleep disruption
- Nasal congestion or post-nasal drip
- Breathing problems
- Coughing, sneezing, runny nose
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Applying Warm Wet Towels
A warm, wet towel held against the face may help relieve the swelling and inflammation of sinus congestion.
It may also help keep the mucous membranes moist by breathing in moist air, which can help it function properly.
People can also soak a towel in warm water, wring it out, and drape it over their face in a way that is still comfortable for them to breathe through their mouth.
Natural Remedy For Sinus Congestion Relief
The SinuSonic is a handheld, easy-to-use device that utilizes light acoustic vibrations and light resistant pressure that, when combined with normal breathing, is intended to help relieve nasal congestion. As you breathe in and out of the device for up to 3 minutes, SinuSonic emits a gentle acoustic vibration and when exhaling, you experience light pressure and a flutter of resistance. Research has shown that the applications of sound and pressure can help relieve nasal congestion. SinuSonic is the first patents pending device that brings these methods together in a safe and natural way to combat nasal congestion, without drugs, messy irrigators, or surgery. Enjoy the device for 6 months or up to 1,080 minutes from pulling battery tab.
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Foods That Boost Respiratory Health:
- Omega-3 fatty acids in fish, walnuts, flax, and hemp are associated with improved lung function and decreased symptoms of asthma.
- Apples, onions, citrus fruits, and tea are high in quercetin, an antioxidant that reduces inflammation and helps prevent sinus problems.
- Tomatoes contain lycopene, an antioxidant that helps reduce asthma symptoms and improves pulmonary function.
- Cayenne pepper, garlic, onion, ginger, and horseradish break up congestion, thin mucus, and clear excess mucus.
When Should I Call My Healthcare Provider About Sinusitis
Though many cases of acute sinusitis can improve with little to no treatment, you should call the doctor if you experience any painful symptoms. An antibiotic may be needed for a bacterial infection.
If you find that your sinuses do not feel better after 10 days, symptoms have gotten worse, or you have symptoms that initially improved and then worsen five to six days later , you should contact your healthcare provider. Symptoms that continue after about four weeks may mean you have subacute or chronic sinusitis. If you develop other types of symptoms, such as severe eye swelling, or you are just not sure what you should do next, call your provider.
If you have facial pain, and you have healthy teeth, you can try things like nasal rinses and warm, wet washcloths on your face to see if you find some relief. If so, and if your symptoms go away in about 10 days, you probably have had acute sinusitis and it has gotten better on its own. If not, and you continue to feel ill after three or four weeks, call your provider.
Last reviewed by a Cleveland Clinic medical professional on 06/04/2020.
References
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What Are Some Of The Ways I Can Get Natural Sinus Relief
It is typical for a person, even a healthy one, to have sinus issues every now and then. When a person is battling with their sinuses, they often deal with inflammation, headaches, congestion, and facial pressure. Even though antibiotics are typically utilized for a severe sinus infection, these types of drugs arent your only choice if you are dealing with a minor case. In fact, there are ways to achieve natural sinus relief! When you are not dealing with a severe sinus infection, there are natural ways to prevent and relieve sinus symptoms. Here are some natural ways to get relief without medicine utilization if you require some natural sinus relief.