Amid a spike in daily Covid-19 cases prompting citizens to put on their guards, the herbal mask stress reducer ‘NITYA’ developed by NBRI (National Botanical Research Institute) scientists, Lucknow could come in handy to deal with breathing discomforts usually experienced due to long hours of wearing masks.
“NITYA is an innovative herbal product ‘mask stress reducer’ which reduces breathing discomforts such as congestion, excessive humidification of nostrils, and dizziness due to long hours of wearing face masks. It has been prepared by blending three essential oils and base oils known traditionally,” said Dr Sharad Srivastava, senior principal scientist and head of Pharmacognosy Division, NBRI, Lucknow.
“During the first and second waves of Covid, many people complained about breathing discomfort due to masks, especially dizziness. People were using camphor and other oils to get rid of the problem, but no precise combination was available. So, we took this challenge and came up with this herbal mask stress reliever. It is entirely herbal, devoid of any harmful chemicals,” informed Srivastava.
“The user can spray the oil into their mask and inhale deeply to smell it. One advantage is you can spray it in the immediate vicinity, such as a closed room or office environment. It clears the nostrils, making breathing easier for the individual wearing the mask,” he added.
We have even distributed the samples to the frontline warriors as their work demands them to wear masks for a longer time, which has proved effective for them, he said.
“The name NITYA is inspired by Padma Shri Nitya Anand, former director of CDRI (Central Drugs Research Institute) and chairman of Ranbaxy Science Foundation (RSF). A Gurugram-based company ‘MARC’ has been given the technologies of producing the spray for its more comprehensive range of availability in the market,” he said.
