The job of the neti pot is to rinse your mucous membranes, not just clearing congestion but also helping to clear any congestion-causing irritants. The safety of neti pots was recently called into question with two deaths linked to brain infections that were caused by questionably-filtered tap water in rural Louisiana.
DO consider the root causes of your congestion. According to Solomonian, the most common cause of a consistent congestion is actually a food intolerance. DO use it for the whole family — even young children and pregnant women. DO customize to your preferences. Yet, most people are not fans of neti pots, which involve pouring liquid directly into each of your nostrils.
Still, neti pot users often recommend this home remedy along with another low-tech option: inhaling steam. However, occasional problems, such as minor scalds, occur with steam treatments.
Meanwhile, faced with a patient suffering from blocked nasal passages, many doctors reflexively prescribe antibiotics. In fact, one recent study found chronic sinusitis rhinosinusitis is the fifth most common diagnosis for which antibiotics are prescribed in the United States.
Avoiding antibiotic resistance. Little suspects some patients do want to be handed a prescription, still doctors may also be over-estimating peoples' expectations for these drugs. Sinus infection? Antibiotics won't help. This is a problem. Repeat on the other side. Be sure to rinse the irrigation device after each use with similarly distilled, sterile, previously boiled and cooled, or filtered water and leave open to air-dry. Neti pots are often available in pharmacies, health food stores and online.
Other devices, such as squeeze bottles and pressurized canisters, also can be used to rinse or irrigate the nasal passages. Talk to your doctor to see if nasal rinsing is right for you. James T C Li, M. There is a problem with information submitted for this request. Sign up for free, and stay up-to-date on research advancements, health tips and current health topics, like COVID, plus expert advice on managing your health.
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Mayo Clinic does not endorse companies or products. Advertising revenue supports our not-for-profit mission. Any use of this site constitutes your agreement to the Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy linked below. Mayo Clinic is a nonprofit organization and proceeds from Web advertising help support our mission. When you put the spout up to your nostril, tilt your head to the side and pour, the force of the liquid entering your nostril pushes the mucus through your nasal passage and out the other nostril—or in some cases, through your mouth yeah, not the most appetizing.
Your nose should immediately feel less stuffy after using a neti pot, if done correctly. More on that in a bit. The neti pot is actually just one of the ways you can perform nasal saline irrigation.
The squeeze bottle provides more force—and therefore may unclog your nasal cavities better—than a neti pot. This is because normal tap water or even water that has been through a filter can have small amounts of bacteria or protozoa. When swallowed, bacteria are usually killed by stomach acids, according to the Food and Drug Administration , but they can be harmful in the nasal passages, particularly if you're immunocompromised.
If you have a cold, the flu, or a sinus infection, a neti pot can be a quick and safe way to remove mucus from your nose. For instance, if that snot is just too far back in your nose for you to expel into a tissue sorry for the visual! If you have a more long-term ailment like chronic rhinosinusitis 12 or more weeks of nasal congestion and pressure , saline irrigation has been shown to help treat symptoms, according to a study in The Laryngoscope.
These instances are rare, says Dr.
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