Using mouthwash can help lower the spread and transmission of the coronavirus, as per a new study. 

In Journal of Medicine Virology's published study, researchers studied over-the-counter nasal rinses and mouthwashes commonly found in the supermarkets and drugstores. Both types of products directly impact the major sites of transmission and the reception of human COVID-19. 

Mouthwash Could Inactivate Spread of Human Coronavirus, Study Says
(Photo : Leon Neal/Getty Images)
UK Dentists Provide Emergency Care Through Coronavirus Outbreak LONDON, ENGLAND - MAY 28: The mouthwash bowl is seen by a dental surgery chair at East Village dental practice on May 28, 2020 in London, England. With dental staff facing a greater chance of infection due to airborne COVID-19 particles created during certain procedures, many have been forced to close throughout the lockdown with only emergency procedures still taking place at selected practices. Full PPE must be worn whenever a procedure is expected to involve the creation of airborne contaminants, with each surgery room then left for an hour for them to settle, before a disinfection process takes place. During the average day, around twelve patients will actually be seen by the staff, while over thirty more are assisted over the telephone.

As per Yahoo, these mouthwash and nasal rinses could give an additional level of protection against the coronavirus. Researchers tested a common human coronavirus called "229e," one of several strains that usually causes mild infections such as cold, to determine if mouthwashes and nasal rinses would be effective against the virus. 

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), it is not SARS-CoV-2 that is associated with COVID-19. Craig Meyers, Ph.D., the lead author of the study, told Yahoo Life that all forms of COVID-19 diseases have something in common. "They have a membrane," Meyers said, a distinguished professor of immunology and microbiology at Penn State. 

Meyers explained that all you have to do with membrane viruses is break them and be inactivated. He added that it is tough to work with the actual coronaviruses, but the membranes in COVID-19, in general, are more likely the same.  

According to ScienceDaily, it was not the first study that looked at mouthwash products in reducing viral load. The published study in the Journal of Infectious Diseases in July, researchers tested eight different mouthwash types from drugstores and pharmacies in Germany.

The study found that all mouthwash products reduced the viral load. Three types of mouthwash "reduced viruses to such an extent that no virus was detected after an exposure time of thirty seconds."

However, the German study's authors emphasize that it doesn't mean that mouthwashes can only be the way to treat COVID-19. Toni Meister of Ruhr University Bochum in Germany and a lead author of the study told ScienceDaily.

"Gargling with a mouthwash can't inhibit the production of viruses in the cells. But mouthwash could reduce the viral load in short term where the potential infection came from, such as oral cavity and throat - and this could be useful in certain scenarios, such as during the medical care of COVID-19 patients."

Meyers agreed and said that people still need to wear a mask and take social distancing, as, for him, mouthwash is just extra help.

On the other hand, an assistant professor of otolaryngology at Johns Hopkins Medicine, Nicholas Rowan, MD, told Yahoo Life that the use of nasal rinses and mouthwashes are "promising areas" and are "stimulating therapies, logical, and more likely to be low risk." 

Rowan, like Meyers, says that more research is needed. He explained that there are lots of credence to these claims. But the most crucial hindrance of these medications is the lack of proven efficacy and appropriate clinical trials before officials provide these kinds of medication to patients. 

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