Sciencemadness Discussion Board

Flu + NH3 or HCl vapours

ChemistryForever - 7-1-2019 at 04:55

Has anyone tryed to clear their noses by dipping their nose when they are sick in some 32% ammonia bottle or 37% hydrochloric acid and inhale a bit of vapours ( for HCl not too much, otherwise it feels like a brick in the face )? I did once and partially it seemed to work for me ( well I dont know why but I love their smell. It may sound crazy, but I love the smell of a lot of chemicals except for some such as bromine ).

morganbw - 7-1-2019 at 05:12

Decades ago I sniffed from both, not at exactly the same time, and only out of curiosity.

Both are way too concentrated and I am very sure quite damaging to the person doing the sniffing.

I fail to see any possible health benefits from either.

fusso - 7-1-2019 at 05:27

Quote: Originally posted by morganbw  
Decades ago I sniffed from both, not at exactly the same time, and only out of curiosity.

Both are way too concentrated and I am very sure quite damaging to the person doing the sniffing.

I fail to see any possible health benefits from either.
Why not dilute and retry if found too concentrated?

TheMrbunGee - 7-1-2019 at 06:13

Quote: Originally posted by ChemistryForever  
Has anyone tryed to clear their noses by dipping their nose when they are sick in some 32% ammonia bottle or 37% hydrochloric acid and inhale a bit of vapours ( for HCl not too much, otherwise it feels like a brick in the face )? I did once and partially it seemed to work for me ( well I dont know why but I love their smell. It may sound crazy, but I love the smell of a lot of chemicals except for some such as bromine ).


That is for sure not healthy, but if it works, and you just can't stand the mouth-breathing - why not. Most of the drugs for blocked nose are unhealthy too, and some of them have nasty side effects. (after one, I can't recall which one, my nose hurt so bad I haven't used any for more than 10 years)

32% ammonia solution hits me like brick too, even 10% is very hard to breath in. have you tried lower concentration?

Σldritch - 7-1-2019 at 09:34

This has to be a joke, why would you inhale corrosive chemicals when you could get the same effect by just eating some spicy food?! Because you seem unable to leave your lab perhaps try menthol which you may have laying around. Put it in some boiling water and breathe it, it will be just as painful as the ammonia but will not actually destroy your nose.

woelen - 8-1-2019 at 03:34

Inhaling HCl is very bad for your health and may even increase the risk of cancer. It recently was discovered that inhaling acid mists (fumes from HCl, fine droplets of H2SO4) may increase the risk of cancer, but the effect is not strong. The corrosive action of the acid on the nose, however, never is beneficial.

Inhalation of low concentrations of NH3 (such that it just becomes pungent and tickles the inside of the nose) can be beneficial. It makes the nose produce some humidity, which may help removing material from it when you have a serious cold or flu. I personally tried this once (using 5% NH3 and carefully wafting some of it from the open bottle to my nose). It helps a little bit, may make it easier to clear your nose. Do not expect a miracle though!
Never stick your nose in a bottle of concentrated NH3. Even 5% household ammonia may be unbearable when you simply stick your nose in the bottle.

In one case I really had benefit of carefully inhaling some NH3. In an experiment I had inhaled a little too much Br2 through my nose. I had a burning sensation at the inside of my nose. I carefully inhaled some NH3, until the smell of NH3 replaced the lingering smell of Br2 in my nose. The burning sensation quickly vanished. I used great care not to inhale NH3 of high concentration.

NH3 reacts very cleanly with Br2, forming N2 and NH4Br (reacting Br2 with ammonia is one of the preparative ways of making NH4Br). N2 and NH4Br are not corrosive.

AJKOER - 7-2-2019 at 08:16

I personally discovered that chewing, for an adult, 25 mg of a zinc tablet (usually composed of zinc gluconate) stops cold symptoms for around 6-8 hours as Zn apparently tries to take the place of Mn in the biochemistry of food ingestion. It apparently does a terrible job leading to the starving of microbes. I personally dose every 8 hours, to a total of 75 mg per day (this reference discusses zinc dosing at https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4231515/ ).

Some sources, like Life Extension Magazine article on treating the flu, actually suggested using more frequent dosing leading to a higher daily dose for a few days (Caution: Zn is toxic especially to your kidney at higher doses, so controlled dosing is mandatory, and consult with your doctor if you have kidney disease or other conditions that may preclude the use zinc).

The result of using zinc is a physical (due to atom size differences) disruption of nutrient intake for bacteria and viruses. This weakens or kills the invading microbes. Hence, complement the use of zinc with a stronger immune system and also the use of oil of oregano (best) or garlic or ginger....or, your doctor's prescribed super antibiotic (which is compatible with zinc as I once did as my first prescribed 'super antibiotic' wasn't up to the task of defeating an E. Coli infection, and with the second choice 'super antibiotic', but now with an added 12 hour staggered dose of 50 mg Zn, literally saved my life, as two doctors came to my hospital bed looking as if they were at a funeral and told me I could die, as the E Coli was about to fatally spread to my kidneys!).

Here is a reference referring to the mechanic roughly discussed above in the Australian Journal of Medicine at https://www.adelaide.edu.au/news/news66182.html and other citations for more specific recommended uses of Zn at https://www.google.com/search?source=hp&ei=vVVcXL_1Aaau5... .

Interesting, other than Australia, Germany has also performed much larger gold standard studies to test the benefits of integrating some herbal remedies with standard medicines, with positive results on effectiveness and rates of recidivism.
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Anyone who does not believe my sources or accounts from my personal experience, is welcomed to perform the following test after consulting with their healthcare provider. The next time you have a cold with an obvious runny nose, chew (best) or just swallow, 25 mg of zinc and wait an hour, and see if you still have a runny nose!

I do not recommend over the counter zinc cold treatment as the dosing is very low (to avoid lawsuits from people who should not be using Zn at all due to diseases of kidney,...), high prices, and the incorporation of sugar which suppresses ones immune system.

DISCLOSURE: I do not sell, am employed, or in any way associated with the sale of herbal supplements including zinc. I do not hold related investments or short positions in biotech or drug companies. My personal use of zinc may not be recommended by your healthcare provider, so consult with your doctor. The advice of Life Extension Magazine is solely theirs based on review of the literature.

[Edited on 7-2-2019 by AJKOER]

RogueRose - 7-2-2019 at 11:41

What works about 100x better is adrenaline - clears the nose in about 1/2 a second.

MrHomeScientist - 7-2-2019 at 12:21

Take two roller coaster rides and call me in the morning.

Morgan - 7-2-2019 at 15:22

I tried zinc lozenges and it affected my tongue and made my throat sore. I guess the spray can cause a permanent loss of smell, so it's probably not all that cell friendly in the doses concocted. Also I recall hearing in the news zinc in denture cream caused nerve damage. Zinc may work but loss of taste and painful throat effect not for me.
Oysters are a natural source of zinc. Maybe I'll try them for my next cold/runny nose just to see. I was reading 6 medium oysters have 32 milligrams of zinc.
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/common-cold/e...
https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/zinc-for-the-common-cold...

Another view
"In order for a lozenge to provide enough zinc to be effective, it needs to contain between 13 and 23 milligrams, Dr. Cooperman says. Yet only two of the four lozenges Consumer Lab tested—Cold-Eeze Homeopathic Cold Remedy and Nature’s Way Zinc—provided enough. (There are other brands of zinc they didn't test.)"
"Though you can no longer buy zinc nasal spray, it’s still available as a throat spray, which might be problematic, according to Dr. Cooperman. “If you spray it into your throat it can still go up your nose,” Dr. Cooperman says."

https://www.health.com/cold-flu-sinus/4-things-you-should-kn...

[Edited on 8-2-2019 by Morgan]

hissingnoise - 8-2-2019 at 08:01

Chlorates were thought to be effective in Zubes for killing viruses and bact. by oxidation and chlorine in moist air in which it forms HClO was used as a cold remedy to some extent in the past...

WangleSpong5000 - 26-3-2019 at 01:17

Do not inhale HCl gas... just don't. Stick to Oxymetazeline (sic) nasal spray or better yet, steroid based sprays such as Nasonex...

Or if you have ADHD just neck your meds. Dexamphetamine clears the nose brilliantly.