Fifth in a series of random posts on things that might be of use to others, with the usual disclaimers that nothing works for everybody.

A friend recently clued me in to the existence of Covixyl, a nasal spray that — as the name suggests — was developed in response to the covid pandemic, but which actually has much broader use. Rather than being a vaccine, it physically binds to the cells in your nasal passages, making them inhospitable to respiratory viruses. Two sprays up each nostril give you up to six hours of protection.

Studies on its effectiveness are still few in number, but they are distinctly encouraging. Even if it’s only a 60% reduction in risk of respiratory infection (which is the number I saw somewhere; can’t find where now), that’s still a lot less risk. About the only downside I know of is that the first ten to twenty seconds after you use it are uhhhh kind of literally eye-watering — this stuff does sting a bit! But it’s fairly affordable: $19 for one bottle, which they estimate will last you a month, or you can get it cheaper if you buy three ($54) or six ($100) bottles at a time.

I’m about to go on vacation, and I’m absolutely bringing this stuff with me. I’ll still be masking in high-risk situations like crowds, but having this as a second line of defense will make me feel a lot more sanguine about being able to enjoy the trip.