How to Make Your Own Neti Pot

One of the most thorough and sanitary ways to clear your sinuses of mucus build up is to irrigate your nostrils with saline solution using a neti pot. You can buy a fancy ceramic one from the store or you can make one at home using your old dish washing soap bottle. Read on to learn more.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Empty dish soap bottle
• Warm water
• Sea salt: non-iodized and finely ground

1. You can use just about any plastic bottle with a squirt nozzle. Dish soap bottles work well because it is easy to seal your nostril around the nozzle when you squirt the solution into your nasal cavity. Make sure both your dish bottle and its nozzle are thoroughly rinsed so there is no soap left in the bottle.

2. Combine 1 teaspoon of sea salt to one cup of warm water into the bottle and shake it lightly until the salt is completely dissolved. The smaller the granules of salt, the faster it will dissolve. This is enough saline solution for one nostril.

3. Lean your head over a sink, make sure one nostril is completely sealed around the nozzle, and squirt the entire saline solution into your nasal cavity.

4. Afterwards, blow your nose to clear out all the loosened mucus from your nose. Be sure keep BOTH nostrils open when you do this or the solution will be forced into your ear cavity.

5. Repeat steps one through three for the other nostril. Now your sinuses should be completely clear.

Tips & Warnings

• Nasal irrigation is a good habit for when you have a cold, the flu, or sinus headaches.
• Don't forget: When you are blowing your nose after each saline squirt, do not plug your other nostril or the solution will go into your ears.

[prettywoman62]

on 7/18/2009 No need to go out and buy a special pot. I use an empty Arrowhead Water bottle with a sport cap. I make my own solution too. 1/2 tsp sea salt and 1/8 tsp of baking soda per 1 cup of tepid water. Just lean over the sink tip your head to one side....then gently squeeze water into one nostril, keeping your mouth open to be able to breathe and not choke. After a few squirts, blow your nose and repeat on other side. Works fantastic and not as gross as you would think. Really does wonders when you're suffering.

[hfayew]

on 6/29/2009 WHAT A RELIEF!! I wanted to go buy a neti pot but had no energy due to an awful sinus infection and severe pressure headache. I wish I had tried this years ago. I'm sticking to my soap bottle now. Quick shallow breaths will keep most of the water from running down your throat, but for me such was an added bonus and soothed my sore throat. THANKS FOR THE ARTICLE

[sasha1]

on 5/23/2009 Thank you very much indeed! I'm from Bosnia and Herzegovina, and I also saw the same Oprah show with Dr. Oz and the nose bidet. It's funny though that we get to watch Oprah with a subtitle (although a few months after it has been emitted in the US), but I was unable to find a nose bidet in any of the local drugstores! In only one drugstore they actually knew what I was talking about but were all out :( Then I decided to look it up online and found this great article! Greets from Banja Luka!

[mcnugget]

on 2/3/2009 WOW, this worked GREAT! I didn't use a dish soap bottle though, I felt it would take too long to get the soap completely out of the bottle. I went thru my medicine cabinet and found a bottle of solution for my contacts and thought hmmm .. this should work. I mixed up the sea salt and cup of hot water in a measuring cup, cleaned out the solution bottle and poured about half of the cup into the bottle and used it. It worked GREAT. cleared it up in two squirts... thanks!

[claypost]

on 9/7/2008 I just broke my neti pot and I need to breathe! This is a great quick fix!

Also, a tea pot with a spout small enough to be inserted into the nostril works. In fact, that is all a neti pot is. If you're a first timer, I'd break down and buy a kit. They're only ten bucks and make the process, which can be an awkward one, much easier.