Home remedies for sinus problems are a bit like comfort food. You opt for them when things are bleak or painful or both. And while you might not scare up much research to support the health value of tucking into a chicken cutlet with mashed potatoes, doctors are increasingly giving props to ways we can ease sinus pain with such practical remedies as saltwater nasal sprays and warm compresses.
Need a big name? Mayo Clinic endorsed saltwater sprays and warm compresses in its October 2008 health newsletter for women, just in time for the cold and flu season. Truth? Grandma knows more about comfort than even Mayo when sinuses are inflamed and dropping us for a loss.
But Mayo is good at explained how a cold turns into sinus pain and, even worse, chronic sinus pain: “Sinusitis often begins when a cold, which is caused by a virus, then leads to inflammation in the lining of the sinuses. Sometimes, this leads to a bacterial infection, which then creates a longer bout of sinusitis — lasting longer than 10 to 14 days.”
If a doctor has never talked to you about sinusitis, consider yourself fortunate. The rest of us know the sinus pain is like back pain—until you experience it, you just don’t know.
