It's now 3 years being free of chronic sinusitis and off all antibiotics! Three amazing years since I started using easy do-it-yourself sinusitis treatments containing the probiotic (beneficial bacteria) Lactobacillus sakei. My sinuses feel great! And yes, it still feels miraculous.
After reading the original ground-breaking research on sinusitis done by Abreu et al (2012), it led to finding and trying L. sakei as a sinusitis treatment. Of course, there is an entire community of microbes that live in healthy sinuses (the sinus microbiome), but L. sakei seems to be a key one for sinus health.
I just updated the post The One Probiotic That Treats Sinusitis (originally posted January 2015) using my family's experiences (lots of self-experimentation!) and all the information that people have sent me. The post has a list of brands and products with L. sakei, as well as information about some other promising bacteria. Thank you so much! [For latest see: The Best Probiotic For Sinus Infections]
Thank you all who have written to me - whether publicly or privately. Please keep writing and tell me what has worked or hasn't worked for you as a sinusitis treatment. If you find another bacteria or microbe or product that works for you - please let me know. It all adds to the sinusitis treatment knowledge base. I will keep posting updates.
(NOTE: I wrote our background story - Sinusitis Treatment Story back in December 2013, and there is also a Sinusitis Treatment Summary page with the various treatment methods. One can also click on SINUSITIS under CATEGORIES to see more posts, such as "Probiotics and Sinusitis" - a discussion by one of the original sinusitis researchers about what she thinks is going on in sinus microbiomes and what is needed.)
Has anyone tried getting a Kimchi starter kit and making your own fermented Kimchi? This would avoid the shipping issues related to receiving a good live culture of beneficial bacteria. And would be a lot cheaper for sure. Like a sourdough starter, you could keep an ongoing kimchi starter going and basically have a kimchi farm in your frig. Just an idea.
I do know that some people have reported success with homemade kimchi, but I don't have their recipes. A recipe with ingredients that comes closest to what is in Sunja's kimchi (the one my family uses) is this one http://www.thekitchn.com/how-to-make-easy-kimchi-at-home-189390 (and using water instead of seafood flavor). Studies (and our own experiences) find that Lactobacillus sakei may be found in kimchi from about day 14, but unfortunately one doesn't know if L. sakei is in the kimchi until one tries it.
I would look at comments after the 3 sinusitis posts mentioned for more ideas about kimchi and L. sakei products.
I want to thank you so much for posting the details of your experience on the internet. I have been colonized by pseudomonas aeruginosa in both the lungs and the sinuses, and have had a real breakthrough in treating my sinusitis thanks to you. I thought you, as well as others who stumble across this site while searching for answers to their health questions, might be interested to know how I extended the treatment you pioneered.
I started with the kimchi treatment, but it didn't have much efficacy for me; probably my kimchi didn't contain L. Sakei. So I ordered the Bactoferm. For several days I smeared it in my nostrils, and it seemed to be helping, but not enough. So I decided to take things further and I shot the Bactoferm up my sinuses with a nasal aspirator. This forceful irrigation of my sinuses with Bactoferm had revolutionary results. My sinuses feel completely normal for the first time in a decade. I used to have to flush my sinuses with salt/baking soda/baby shampoo several times a day in order to get the goop out; now there's no goop. Every now and then I blow my nose and produce some completely clear mucus, which is (I believe) normal for healthy sinuses. I experience no pain, no pressure, no post-nasal drip. The only issue that was slightly concerning was a temporary decrease in my ability to smell, but that went away after a few days. I only had to shoot BactoFerm up my head once; no repeat treatment has been necessary.
In case anyone wants to know what worked for me specifically, here is what I did: I "woke up" the BactoFerm, as you mentioned in your posts, by mixing perhaps a teaspoon or two of the frozen bacteria with about a quarter cup of distilled water and letting it sit for twenty minutes. Then I heated a cup of distilled water in the microwave for 12 seconds--enough so it would be very slightly warm and not uncomfortable in my sinuses, but not so warm that it would potentially harm the L. Sakei. I put a quarter teaspoon of kosher salt in the lightly warmed water; again, so my sinuses wouldn't hurt from the treatment. Then I mixed the bacteria-water into the warmed salt water, and drew up a bulb-full into my nasal aspirator. I took turns shooting bulb-fulls of the bacterial solution up each nostril until I had used up the solution. It didn't hurt at all. For the next few days there was dried green goop in my nostrils in the morning when I woke up, and then my head was completely cleared up.
I hope this is helpful to someone else, and thanks again for sharing your experience with the rest of us! I'm still having lung problems, and am trying to work up my nerve to try putting Bacto-Ferm solution into my nebulizer and inhaling it.
This is a truly amazing story, and I'm so glad that you had success.
I'm now wondering if some of the people who wrote me saying Bactoferm F-RM-52 didn't work for them actually just didn't get enough L. sakei up into their sinuses. At this point no one knows.
This research article tested various Lactobacillus species to prevent and inhibit pulmonary Pseudomonas aeruginosa. They said: "Eight strains belonging to Lactobacillus fermentum, Lactobacillus zeae and Lactobacillus paracasei species harbouring anti-elastase and anti-biofilm properties are potential probiotics for fighting P. aeruginosa pulmonary infections". The article also discusses other Lactobacillus species.