Thread by @Biff248824

Quick 🧵on the current state of Iota-carrageenan nasal sprays: Efficacy, safety, Betadine shortages, buying options for US & Can. markets.

I-C sprays are the only option on the market that have a real-world randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study backing them up. 1/14

This study assessed the use of an I-C nasal spray in 394 hospital personnel dedicated to care of COVID-19 patients. Out of 198 to receive placebo, 10 infections (5% incidence). Out of the 196 to receive I-C, 2 infections (1% incidence). 2/14

pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC84…

Other options, like Nitric Oxide (Enovid, VirX), Astodrimer sodium (Viraleze), ELAH (Covixyl), or Xylitol (Xlear) often appear promising, but to this point only have positive studies in vitro or positive studies that are not randomized, double blind, or placebo-controlled. 3/14

I-C sprays have been on the market much longer than other options with no reported long-term safety issues. Carragelose, the patented form of Iota-carrageenan commonly used in nasal sprays, received their first patent in 1997 and products came to market shortly after. 4/14

Starpharma (the producer of Viraleze) recently released a study showing that I-C has a fantastic safety profile, creating no issues with tissue integrity and impacting cell viability even less than their own product and all other options tested. 5/14

nature.com/articles/s4159…

That same study also highlighted serious potential safety issues with sprays containing Hydroxypropyl Methylcellulose (Vicks, Taffix) or Povidone-Iodine (CofixRx, etc). And for the love of god please do not be putting Neosporin up your nostrils like some have recommended. 6/14

For most people in North America, the go-to brand over the last 5 years has been Betadine, which is produced for and sold in the Canadian market. Lately, there have been production issues, no available stock, and it may be the case that Betadine is discontinued entirely. 7/14

This Reddit thread discusses possible explanations (wholesalers ceasing operations, parent comp. Purdue pharma selling off OTC division). Some retailers state they expect stock again soon, but the timeline has shifted forward with no real updates. 8/14

reddit.com/r/ZeroCovidCom…

Fortunately, there are several alternative sprays to Betadine, many of which might potentially even have a slightly higher efficacy. 9/14

For starters, there’s my pick, NoriZite from @birminghambio. In addition to I-C, this spray is unique in that it contains gellan gum, making it more viscous than other brands and helping with adhesion. They also produces an I-C oral spray which you might be interested in. 10/14

@birminghambio Next, there’s Lontax from Italy. This product is identical to Betadine, containing patented carragelose at a concentration of 1.2mg/ml. Notably, as well as another oral spray, they sell I-C lozenges which I also strongly recommend as part of a throat prophylaxis protocol. 11/14

Next, there’s Flo Travel from Australia. Might be a potential issue that it appears to mainly be available on Amazon from a questionable seller, however, a benefit is that it contains a slightly higher concentration of carragelose at 1.6mg/ml instead of Betadine’s 1.2. 12/14

For folks in Canada, you have an easier option unless you want to make one of the upgrades above. Salinex ProTect is identical (1.2mg/ml carragelose) and also sold in Canada, available in many pharmacies or at . For US folks, no easy shipping for now. 13/14 well.ca

These are just brands I’m personally familiar with. For a full list, see the Carragelose website. Ex: Algovir (Germany) & Viruseptin (Nordic) are popular, but I have not done research into purchasing options. Let me know if you have any questions. 14/14

carragelose.com/en/portfolio/l…

EDIT 1/2: Another couple brands that I’ve seen people mention are Nasitrol and ePothex. They do exist, and might be faster to ship and/or more affordable. Outside of that, neither seem to be using Carragelose or have any thickening agents so I would likely pass personally.

EDIT 2/2: Also seeing a lot about Profi. I don’t dislike it, the high viscosity is good since the main mechanism of these sprays is creating a physical barrier. It seems solid, but again, I don’t see myself purchasing for any reason in the absence of a real-world in vivo study.