Scientists prove granny’s gargle does help children get over a cold faster

Parents can have a sigh of relief after a study proves the power of a simple and cheap salt water gargle in the fight against colds.

It might not feel pleasant, but saline solutions are bang for their buck in the fight against colds, a new study suggests.

Adults should take note too – the affordable solution can also help reduce transmission of colds to family members.

The price of saline solution starts from less than £2 over the counter, and it is also easy to make at home with any type of salt and water.

Professor Steve Cunningham, who was part of the project, said: ‘Children have up to 10 to 12 upper respiratory tract infections, what we refer to as colds, per year, which have a big impact on them and their families.

‘There are medicines to improve symptoms, such as paracetamol and ibuprofen, but no treatments that can make a cold get better quicker.’

People in South Asia often use salt-water solutions as nasal irrigation and gargling, giving the idea for the mass study in children to Dr Sandeep Ramalingam, the research chief investigator and a consultant virologist with NHS Lothian.

Defence against viruses

To prove the power of saline solution, the research team recruited 407 children aged up to six.

When 301 of the kids developed a cold, 150 of them were given sea salt liquid while 151 resorted to usual cold care.

They found that children having usual care had symptoms for eight days, while those given saline solution treatment by their parents only had it for six.

Prof Cunningham explained: ‘We found that children using salt-water nose drops had cold symptoms for an average of six days where those with usual care had symptoms for eight days.

‘The children receiving salt water nose drops also needed fewer medicines during their illness.

‘Salt is made up of sodium and chloride. Chloride is used by the cells lining the nose and windpipes to produce hypochlorous acid within cells, which they use to defend against virus infection.

‘By giving extra chloride to the lining cells this helps the cells produce more hypochlorous acid, which helps suppress viral replication, reducing the length of the virus infection, and therefore the duration of symptoms.’

Entirely families benefit

To make the findings even better, it was discovered that when children got salt-water nose drops, family members in fewer families caught a cold.

When parents were asked, 82% said the nose drops helped their child to get better quickly.

The findings are likely to be welcome news for parents dreading what the cold season has in store for them – especially if they have an existing respiratory condition like asthma.

Dr Andy Whittamore, the clinical lead at Asthma + Lung UK, told Metro.co.uk: ‘Shortening the time a child is poorly with a cold, with such an easily accessible solution such as salt-water nasal drops, will be a relief to parents and carers.

‘The saline drops can even be made at home, are very safe for children and are easy to administer.

‘Although colds are commonplace for children and rarely dangerous, in a recent survey Asthma + Lung UK found around 3 in 4 people found colds and flu made their lung condition symptoms worse.