A team of Spanish researchers found that people with seasonal allergies (hay fever or allergic rhinitis) and who rinsed their nostrils with salt water three times a day, had a blood count containing much less immunoglobulin E (IgE), a marker for allergic reactions.

The 8-week study was carried out with 25 people with allergies who were divided into two groups, one experimental and one control. Subjects could use antihistamines as needed and this was the only treatment allowed.

Patients in the experimental group used a special small device from WaterPik to pass salt water from one nostril to the other for 30 to 60 seconds. The procedure was repeated alternately with each nostril for about 5 minutes, three times a day.

The results of the IgE measurements show that the subjects of the experimental group saw their IgE level increase much less than that of the control group. According to Dr. Jose Subiza, a researcher in the immunology department of Clinico San Carlos (Madrid), it is possible that salt water brings with it pollen and nasal secretions that cause inflammation of the mucous membranes and allow allergens to enter the bloodstream more easily.

Nasal irrigation has failed to provide complete allergy relief, but researchers conclude that it can certainly help manage acute symptoms during allergy season.

This study provides indirect confirmation of another popular application of this practice, to relieve nasal congestion in colds.

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The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, 1999;104;711-712