Is Saltwater Good For Healing Wounds

You may have noticed that after swimming in the ocean, a minor wound on your body may appear to have healed more quickly than normal. This is not just your imagination, as saltwater has been used by people for healing the body, including scrapes and cuts and internal use, for more than a thousand years.

Whether using sea water, sterile saline solution, or a mixture of sea salt and water, this solution has many uses for healing and general skin care and has been shown effective for helping treat psoriasis, rashes, lacerations, and even as an acne treatment.

The earliest records of using this natural skin healing solution dates back to the Egyptians, who used the solution for stomach ulcers and external skin injuries. Egyptians would use seawater and use it directly, or they would let the water evaporate and mix the remaining salt with their own solutions of water so that they could control the concentration of salt.

Hippocrates, also known as Father of Medicine, concocted multiple cures using saltwater to heal cuts, scrapes, and even more serious skin injuries. He also used saltwater for internal problems, such as ulcers of the mouth or stomach. Hippocrates became interested in exploring the healing powers of saline after he observed how quickly fishermen’s hands and other minor skin injuries healed after exposure to seawater.

The Romans also discovered the healing power of saltwater long ago. Doctors treated stomach ulcers and digestive problems with the solution by preparing drinks for their patients. They also made ointments to treat skin injuries, and had patients bathe in the solution to clear up skin diseases and combat itching and inflammation...effectively recommending saltwater as a primary medicinal for skin care and common skin problems.

Doctors have also recommended saltwater for treating sore throats and mouth ulcers.

In addition, the solution has been found to be effective for other types of mouth sores, such as infections of the gum or jaw. Wounds below the jaw in the form of abscesses have also been treated with saline solutions, as that helps to draw out infection from the abscess. Dentists in Great Britain have determined that saltwater is good for mouth injuries and sores because it increases blood flow to the affected area, which helps to both speed up healing and reduce the amount of inflammation of the area due to its contracting effect on the cells of the tissues.

In fact is is common for dentists and hygenists who have pulled teeth (or for children who have lost teeth) to gently rinse several times a day to kill bacteria, increase skin healing and to irrigate pockets/sockets of debris and food particles.

Saltwater has also been found to be helpful in the treatment of many types of skin injuries. In hospitals, sterile saline solution is a common staple in the operating room due to the solution’s ability to effectively clean, sterilize, and promote healing in skin injuries. When treating a wound at home with saltwater, you should make the solution as sterile as possible; grabbing a bucketful of ocean water and pouring it on your wound is not the best way to go about this.

You can purchase sterile saline solution in pharmacies and stores that sell medications and medical supplies. You can also make your own saline solution at home by combining sea salt or kosher with sterile water and mixing it up. The solution can be used both internally to treat mouth injuries or externally for skin injuries.

Similar to wound healing properties of saltwater and saline, Emu Oil is recommended as effective skin care. It is used extensively in New Zealand and Australia and has been shown to accelerate healing of lacerations, burns, rashes and cuts. Using Emu oil for skin, skin problems and care is widely accepted and effective.