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Try this easy method for the prevention of sinus problems and infection using therapeutic probiotics before bed to maintain tissue health and flora balance in the nasal cavities.
When on vacation or traveling for work, many of us eat lower quality food and stay up later than we normally would at home. When your eating/sleeping schedule gets mangled due to travel plans, sinus problems can quickly crop up. The symptoms cause discomfort and misery especially if flying is part of the itinerary.
The next time you are planning to go out of town, try this easy way to prevent sinus problems to keep you breathing freely.
Doctor’s Tip on Preventing Sinus Problems
Most folks don’t realize that beneficial flora strains, also known as good bacteria, seek to dominate and protect every tissue of your body, not just your gut! There are plenty of beneficial bacteria in your mouth, throat, nasal passages, and ears too.
When you get a sinus infection, the balance of good bacteria to bad (pathogenic) bacteria – including candida – becomes imbalanced. This means that the pathogenic strains take over with lots of mucus and possibly even an infection the result.
To prevent this from happening, after brushing and flossing your teeth at night before you go to bed, empty a probiotic capsule into your mouth, swish it around in your mouth, and swallow.
It is very important to not drink anything – even water – after you do this.
Enough probiotic residue will be left in your mouth after swallowing. The good little critters will migrate while you sleep all through your nasal passages, guarding the roost and helping to make sure no pathogens have an opportunity to start plugging up the works.
This important tip is suggested by an MD based on the clinical experience of Dr. Natasha Campbell-Mcbride. She suggests it in her groundbreaking GAPS book. (1)
Therapeutic Grade Probiotics for Clear Sinuses
Be aware that not all probiotics are of the same quality and hence will not have equal effectiveness in preventing sinus problems. If a probiotic needs refrigeration, for example, don’t buy it. Probiotic cultures should be hardy enough to be shelf-stable with no refrigeration necessary. Think about it. If a probiotic can’t survive at room temperature, how in the world will it survive the digestive process to make it into the large intestine intact to help rebalance bacterial populations?
When choosing a probiotic, consider that a wide variety of strains should be present.
These brands of therapeutic strength probiotics are tested for quality. I have also personally vetted them.
Already Have an Infection?
If you already have a sinus infection and need help, consider this idea.
Use a ceramic neti pot (I like this one) plus your probiotic of choice to help heal a sinus infection fast with no antibiotics. It is important to always use filtered water in a neti-pot, by the way.
The key is harnessing beneficial microbes to beat back the pathogens (viruses, bacteria, fungi like C. Albicans) and re-establish balance in the sinus tissue as quickly as possible. Note that some strains of probiotics thrive better in the ear, nose, and throat tissues than others. As a result, it is best to use oral probiotics for this purpose, although any probiotic will certainly be helpful for healing.
This green juice recipe known as a “power shot” might be helpful to your recovery too.
Reference
(1) Gut and Psychology Syndrome: Natural Treatment for Autism, Dyspraxia, A.D.D., Dyslexia, A.D.H.D., Depression, Schizophrenia, by Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride MD
wow, very interesting! will have to try this as i often have plugged sinuses, so much so that i don’t even notice it anymore.
What about those of us outside of the US who don’t have access to those types of products? I guess I could brew ginger beer… Other ideas?
Check my Resources page under Supplements .. the company listed ships BioKult worldwide.
hmmm. This is very interesting. When I’m not traveling, would taking a tbls of liquid homemade whey and swishing it around before bedtime be just as good? I usually spray Zicam in my mouth at the first sign of a cold but I’d much prefer this. Thanks and Happy Thanksgiving!
Homemade whey has a lot of carbs/milk sugar in it that would possibly contribute to decay while you slept with it on your teeth. I wouldn’t use that as a sub for a probiotic capsule.
Hi Sarah,
My daughter is almost nine months and she has gut problems since birth. I put her on the Gaps diet and bought the Baby Biotic because of the suggestion of Dr. Campbell- McBride. It needs refrigeration and I didn’t work for my daughter like other brands did. It seems dead to me. It is recommended from same Doctor but this is not as good as biocult! That was a total disappointment to me:( If you have any other baby probiotic suggestion, I would appreciate.
I have been using True Balance for Kids because I am nursing, I couldn’t use the regular strength. I just love it! It is a throat specific probiotic that helps with ear,throat infenction and sinus. After using it, I started to clean my bowels a lot and my terrible sinus seemed to fade away. I truly recommend it.
Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family!
Thanks for this tip–haven’t tried probiotics yet, but am learning more (from you and others) about beneficial bacteria. I used to get terrible sinus infection everytime there was a hint of common cold, but cut out grain, soy, and sugar about 8 months ago, and started feeling fantastic. As an experiment, eliminated dairy and after a couple weeks experienced a (ick!) huge amount of mucus draining from my nose and coughing up phlegm (Yissell take note?) that lasted about 10 days. For the first time in my life I could breathe in a manner that felt like it was from the bottom of my lungs (even using neti pot, or when I used to run half-marathons hacking up gunk, could never get a deep breath; have never smoked!). I don’t know what it is in dairy, the sugar or protein, but It’s gone from my diet now. Would probiotics enable me to have yogurt or kefir from time to time … something to try out, right? Everyone’s body reacts differently.
similar to my husband- except his was one nostril was perpetually plugged. he thought it was just the way he was. he stopped drinking milk & it cleared. now, he still doesn’t drink milk but if has dairy (cheese, etc.) he always takes a lactose enzyme (aka lactaid) & he is fine. you could be sensitive to the lactose i would guess? I believe that if you’re making your own yogurt & letting it culture for a full 24 hours that would remove most of the lactose. You could also try raw milk, or goat’s milk (raw) to see how your body handles it. Some people are able to handle dairy when they take extra probiotics along with it also, I have heard. My 2 cents. 🙂
Awesome advice! You are incredible. Happy Thanksgiving!
Hi Sarah, my son (27mos.) is going through this right now. I switched to raw milk about a month ago and since then he had about two episodes of cold with lots a mucus, maybe a cleansing reaction? He also has two molars coming out, maybe that’s is definitely producing some discomfort for him, not so sure. He’s a very healthy boy, not allergies so far or any other concerns. Now, I would love to give him some of this BioKult, but it says it contains soy trace amounts, is it safe to use them? Also, Is Biokult OK for 2 years old kids? Baby Biotic brand states it is for infants until 2 years old. Any suggestions?
Love your blog, and my family is starting the healthy path thanks to your posts!
Molars coming out can sometimes induce some inflammation/infection in the ears/sinuses. It can also cause a fever .. although most pediatricians say teething/fevers aren’t related. YEAH RIGHT! TELL ME ANOTHER WHOPPER DOC!
I’ve not noticed that BioKult says trace amounts of soy. Perhaps it is bottled in a factory where they also do something with soy? I use Biokult with my kids even when my youngest was quite young and feel very comfortable with that choice. We have found it to be very beneficial over the years.
My view of fevers has been changing, and the incredible, undeniable value of fevers was brought into sharp focus by Dr. Tom Cowan’s talk at the recent Weston Price Conference. I highly recommend getting the recording and giving a listen. Fascinating stuff.
Great tip, Sarah! This method is one that has worked so well for our family. In addition to switching to a real food diet, adding FCLO/BO to our diet and getting aggressive with probiotics is what saved my kids tonsils from tonsillectomies due to chronic strep infections. We emptied Bio-Kult onto their tongues after meals and before bed. Now, if they start getting a little cold or sore throat, we put some Bio-Kult on their tongue before bed and it goes away very quickly. Amazing stuff!
Happy Thanksgiving!
Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours. Many thanks for all your hard work and sharing of information here.
What about oil pulling? I’ve heard it works well on the sinuses too. Do you have any thoughts about it? I am swishing right now, and I wonder if its for any good….?
Oil pulling is fantastic. However, when traveling, probiotic directly in the mouth before bed would be more effective I think. How about oil pulling in the morning and probiotics on the tongue before sleep? That would work even better!