Benefits of Rinsing with Salt Water
The use of salt as a remedy for common ills is popular throughout the world. Besides cleaning wounds, you can also rinse out your mouth using salt water. Salt has potent antibacterial properties and this could explain why it is used for rinsing. It is advisable to use warm water when preparing a salt water rinse.
1. Treats sore throat
A person with a sore throat usually feels pain and the throat feels very dry. A good home cure for this particular problem is using a salt water rinse. Once the mixture of salt and water enters your throat, it helps neutralize the acids causing the sore throat. This helps to relieve the burning and itchy sensations and speeds up healing. A salt water rinse also helps to eliminate surplus mucus and this enhances blood circulation towards the throat.
2. Reduces gum pain
Gum pain is a very uncomfortable condition that has several causes such as a gum infection. However, it is important to know that you can easily manage gum pain by using a salt water rinse. Remember to avoid cold water when preparing your rinse since it can aggravate the sensitive teeth. Warm water helps to melt all the salt crystals unlike cold water. This enables the soothing effects of salt to reach the smallest crevices within the mouth like an abscess. In this case, the salt works by draining the abscess and thus reduces the gum pain.
3. Inhibits bacteria
A salt water rinse could assist to stop the action of bacteria within the mouth. It temporarily increases the PH levels inside the mouth and this prevents bacterial proliferation. This is usually because all bacterial species thrive in acidic environments.
While using a salt water rinse is harmless, swallowing this mixture in large amounts may be harmful as it can cause dehydration.
