COLD: WHY AN INHALER IS A GOOD IDEA

The most important things in brief

• In the cold season, colds knock on the door again.
• In most cases, the upper respiratory tract is affected, the mucous membranes are irritated and we sneeze and cough.
• In this case, steam is a good idea - the mucous membrane is moistened and the mucus loosened.
• With an inhaler, you can easily bring the humidified air to where it is needed.

A cold always brings with it many unpleasant aspects. We feel weak and powerless and know that there are some uncomfortable days ahead of us. But the cold and cough are the most annoying. It is precisely the often hard and dry cough that troubles us, and it often comes at the most inopportune times. For example when eating - or in the middle of the night.

A dry cough is annoying - for ourselves and for those around us

The bad thing about a dry cough is that we know for a fact that the cold isn't really making progress. In addition, barking gets on our nerves, not only on ourselves, but also on our environment. The well-known cough drops or juices only bring short-term relief, since they do not bring the moisture to the mucous membrane that it actually needs.

Because only moist mucous membranes accelerate the progression of a cold. The longer they are dry, the higher the risk of becoming infected with other pathogens at the same time. If, on the other hand, the mucous membranes are moist, the tough and hard secretion is loosened and we can cough it up. But how do we get the airways and mucous membranes moist? An inhaler is ideal.

Remove the hard and stubborn mucus with an inhaler

Hot — or at least warmer — steam is a proven recipe for clearing the upper airways and loosening hard, stubborn phlegm. This applies to coughs and colds, bronchitis and inflammation of the paranasal sinuses. But chronic respiratory diseases can also be combated quite well with moist, inhaled air.

Now there are several options for how the water vapor gets to where it is needed. Many swear by inhaling over a saucepan of tea, ideally chamomile as this plant also has a decongestant effect. This method is traditional and works reliably, but it also involves a certain amount of effort. If you want to save yourself a little work, it's best to get yourself an inhaler.

There are different inhalers

There are different types of inhalers, they work with different techniques. There are the ultrasonic and compressed air nebulizers, which produce the finest mist, which get through the mouth and nose into the sinuses and throat and penetrate into the capillaries. Steam inhalers, on the other hand, replace the saucepan, but many of these devices include masks that channel the warm steam and allow it to be inhaled in a more targeted manner. Hand inhalers, on the other hand, generate the mist using a vibrating membrane.

More important than technology, however, are other factors that you need to consider when purchasing an inhaler. So it is important how high the so-called fogging performance of the device is, because the duration of use depends on it. And the size of the particles that the inhaler produces is also important. This decides which area of ​​the respiratory tract the particles can penetrate.