I have been an advocate of nasal washing with a neti pot for some time. I went to the doctor the other day at Kaiser Permanente. I noticed that in addition to medical treatment, they advocate caring for sinusitis in adults at home with a nasal wash. “Use saline (saltwater) nasal washes to help keep your nasal passages open and wash out mucus and bacteria” – quote from home care instruction sheet. Now you can clean out your nasal passages several ways with a solution:
- saline nose drops,
- use a bulb syringe with a saline solution (very gently in one nostril out the other),
- use a neti pot with a saline solution.
My personal preference is to use a neti pot. Nose drops don’t get a good flow going that clears the passages very effectively. A bulb syringe can easily be pressed hard so the flow is too strong pushing mucus where you don’t want it to go. The neti pot is a natural flow in one nostril and out the other. In my experiences, the neti pot has proven more effective and safer.
I also find that using an aromatic salt that has essential oils provides additional benefits including relieving my allergy symptoms and rinsing away germs before they lodge in the lining of the nose. Plus I love the aroma. My favorite aromatic neti salt is by Into the Scented Garden. If you haven’t tried using a neti pot, there is great information on their site to get you started! Check it out at www.intothescentedgarden.com.
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