You might know what neti pot is if you have made up for this post. But there is a lot of debate on the internet about what type of water you should use for a neti pot. Either it’s bottled water or tap water. In this guide, I’ll explain in depth about using bottled water for neti pot, whether it is safe, and other concerns. Keep reading!
What Are Neti Pots, And How Do They Work?
You know there is a better way of cleaning your nasal passages and wiping off that mucus and allergens from your nose.
A neti pot is a device that has been used for a long while to pass a saline solution through the nose and clean this debris out.
It can use saline or just water in performing this activity. These odd teapots, like devices or vessels, have been known for washing out nasal passages and are highly recommended by many people who don’t have another solution to get relief from colds, allergies, and congestion.
So, there is nothing complicated to understand about these devices.
Can You Really Use Bottled Water For Neti Pots?
Using a neti pot to kill nose problems has never been a problem, but defining the right water source for them is.
Sometimes, that tap water can go just fine, and sometimes it can lead you to death.
Believing that, people do want to know whether it is safe to use bottled water for neti pots or not. In short,
Bottled water or distilled water is completely safe for your neti pots because it doesn’t cause nose infections. Tap water might not have been treated well and has a lot of impurities. When used in a neti pot, these impurities might stick with your brain, ultimately causing an infection that sometimes leads to sudden death!
Therefore, you should always ask your doctor before treating your nasal passages and let it be in writing which water is safe to use.
Besides, read more about bottled water in our bottled water-ultimate guide to know how it helps human life on a daily basis!
Why Using Bottled Water For Neti Pots Crucial?
The road leading to your brain through your nose is one of the most sensitive parts of your body.
When the water reaches your nasal, it also reaches the brain and comes back, cleaning out the debris.
If that water is not clean, there are higher chances of seeing yourself struggling with an infection problem. Certain cases identify the reasons for not using tap water, as listed below!
Two Significant Deaths In Louisiana:
In New York Times Archive, it is stated that after two deadly brain infections closely linked to neti pots, many health officials have implemented new rules and warnings against using these devices.
It can be unsafe even now if you are not applying neti pot user guidelines while cleaning your nasal passages.
In a report given by Louisiana state health officials last year, it was stated that two persons lost their lives due to the infection that was caused by neti pots.
A 20-year-old man and 51 years old woman were found to have tap water being used in their neti pots, which led them to death.
Using tap water for a neti pot differs from using tap water for drinking.
Because even if that water has bacteria, the acid will kill the amoeba and all those chemicals preventing your body from any type of infection.
The Naegleria Fowleri Founded In Tap Water:
The reasons for those deaths were later founded in a report by Food And Drug Administration. The cause was the Naegleria Fowleri, usually present in the water from lakes, rivers, and hot springs.
When their neti pots were filled with tap water containing this chemical or bacteria, it directly affected them with an infection.
Such a kind of infection is rare to find. But it may usually occur when people use neti pots to take water to their noses after they have been through the swimming, rivers, or any other picnic spot.
This Naegleria Fowleri travels fast in reaching your brain, causing an ultimate infection. Such infection is sometimes called Primary Amoebic meningoencephalitis, a harmful disease that destroys your brain tissues and is fatal.
According to the Centers for Disease Control And Prevention, only one or two persons might have survived such disease from 1962 to 2011.
Concerning These, Using Water For Neti Pot Has Been Changed:
With all these faults and severe death cases, the F.D.A took full notice of the situation and imposed new warnings on water usage for neti pots.
The organization has recommended the users to use Bottled water, Distilled water, or filtered water in a neti pot. People can also boil water and let it be cool before they use it in a neti pot.
However, there are no restrictions to be observed on the usage of neti pots so far.
It is still considered the best device and an effective home remedy to eliminate nose allergies and congestion problems.
Tap Water Or Bottled Water For Neti Pot, Which One Is Better And Why?
You would ignore using tap water in a neti pot and opt for bottled water for several reasons.
Please look at the table below to find a comparative analysis for the neti pot water use!
| Factors | Tap Water | Bottled Water |
| Presences Of Chemicals and Bacteria | High Presence | The minor presence or even zero at sometimes |
| Infection Rate to the nose | Critical | Not really |
| Different Types of water | Harmful water for the nose from lacks, rivers, and other natural sources may have Naegleria Fowleri, which is harmful to your brain | Distilled water, sterile water, Pure and mineral water. Use distilled and Sterile Water for neti pot as these types of water are highly recommended. |
| Any Previous Death Cases | Founded in Louisiana a year ago | No case yet and fewer chances in the future as well |
| Cost Factor | Easy to get from anywhere | A little expensive way of nasal treatment |
| Safety Factor | Not really considered and recommended safe to use for nasal passage cleaning by many health officials such as CDC and FDA | Considered Reasonably safe to use with the neti pot and doesn’t harm you with infections or irritations |
| Saline Solution | Creating with tap water will not be worth it | Always recommended |
With these factors, you can clearly choose and identify which one is better to choose between tap water and bottled water.
However, I would still recommend consulting your doctor before trying anything like this at home!
How To Use A Neti Pot With Bottled Water Or Clean Water?
If you are an everyday user of the neti pot, you probably better understand how to use it in the best way.
But still, I would like to share my own experience of how I use it for my weekly nasal passages cleaning requirements and clearing out the debris from the nose. Please have a look!
The Experiment: Basically, you will create a saline solution and insert it in your nose using the neti pot.
Such a solution with the bottled water will go through your nasal passages and clean out all the mucus and other allergens that could have been trapped inside the nose.
Saline also helps the user prevent nasal infection!
Step 1: Create The Solution:
At first, you need to have some warm or normal bottled or distilled water with the marine salt or any standard salt package that would be provided with your neti pot.
Mix things up to create a saline solution and pour that solution into your neti pot to use it.
Step 2: Be On The Right Position On The Sink:
To clean your nose, there will not be any good place than standing around the sink. You need to ensure minimum cleaning, so pouring water while standing over there will be a best practice.
Do it and move to the next step.
Step 3: Let Water Flow Through Your Nose:
Create a seal by placing the tip of your neti pot in a single nostril, as it will lead the solution to the nose.
Now, raise your head and set your neti pot at a good angle so the solution can easily flow through it. This will send or pour the saline solution into your nose.
At this point, the solution reaches all parts of your nasal cavity. It comes out from the other nostril cleaning everything out.
Step 4: Let It Be Cleaned:
If there is more mucus to drip out and the remaining solution to come out, let them be. You can blow the nose to clear out the nasal passages.
Step 5: Do The Same For Second Nostril:
Once your first nostril has been cleaned up, you can repeat the process for the second one. Do it and clean both nostrils properly.
Quoted: “Initially, it’s a weird sensation, but if you’re congested and it washes out some of that stuff, you’re much less miserable,” said Dr. Rohit K. Katial, a professor of medicine and allergy specialist at National Jewish Health, a respiratory hospital based in Denver. “People end up really liking it because they feel refreshed — it’s wellness with water.” Quoted:
According To the CDC, How To Select The Right Type Of Water For Neti Pot?
While using a neti pot is the water you should be concerned about and care about.
Otherwise, you might have a brain infection or some other significant problem that would be worse.
According to the Centers For Diseases Control And Prevention, the CDC recommended using one of the following types of water to pour into a neti pot and drink from it!
Using Boiled Water:
Suppose you are unsure about the quality of your water. In that case, whether it is from filtered tap water or bottled water, you can boil it before using it.
Such water should be boiled for almost one minute and then leave it to cool down.
Buying Bottled Water:
If you cannot use tap water considering its chemical exposure and other bacteria considerations.
To prevent that, use bottled water with labeling stating either mineral water, distilled water, or sterile water.
Use Filtered Water:
You can also use filtration to remove the chemicals linked with the water.
These filters are created to be used in many devices, including your normal water supply, dispensers, and other water sources.
You can read the labels, including the “NSF 53” or NSF 58” labels on the filters, as these are some of the best ones to use for filtering out the water.
Use these and filter out the germs from the water in your house and make it pure.
Disinfecting The Water:
You can also disinfect the water at the right level and remove Chlorine from it by using some Disinfecting Devices.
Even if the Chlorine is removed, your water will still be ready to drink and used through the neti pot.
Filtered/ Pure Water Or Distilled Water Bottled Water, Which One To Use For Neti Pot?
People might have misunderstood comparing Pure Mineral water with distilled water.
You can safely use both of these. Pure water usually comes after filtering out and including minerals.
But when distilled water is concerned, you will use a type of water with zero bacteria.
Distilled water neither has minerals nor chemicals in it. So, it could be the best water to be used for cleaning your nostrils.
Moreover, don’t consider using bottled water if it comes from a spring for your neti pot.
Because water coming from spring have algae and other bacteria inside it.
When such enters your nose, they directly intact with it and cause a significant infection that might leave you to death sometimes.
Instead, distilled water or water filtered through the reverse osmosis process is considered clean and safe for cleaning the nasal passages.
Is Sterile Bottled Water Safe To Use For Neti Pots?
You may find many water bottles in the stores labeled Sterile Water.
Consider it safe to use for your neti pot because it is boiled, filtered, and cooled tap water or water from any other source.
Such water is boiled for almost 3 to 5 minutes and then gets packed into the water bottles.
You can use this type of water inside your neti pots to clean the nasal passages and avoid nose infections!
What Are The Advantages And Disadvantages Of Neti Pots?
Whether you use tap water or bottled water, you have to be sure you are not affected by your own Neti Pot side effects.
Let’s list some pros and cons of using a neti pot for your nasal congestion and nose problems. Please have a look!
Note: It is better to consult your healthcare specialist to find out whether he recommends using a neti pot, a specific type of water, or any other alternative for nose problems.
Don’t be in a hurry!
| Advantages | Disadvantages |
| Cleans your nasal passages fully. | On this side, neti pots are considered safe to use until and unless you are cleared with the usage guidelines and keep your device cleaned after every nose treatment. |
| Provides comfort and relief the sinus pressure. | Using tap water or any low-quality water may cause you several infection problems. Don’t do that! |
| It provides better cleaning to clean out the allergens and all those mucus inside your nose. | Using Saline solution is heavily recommended with your neti pot. But mixing too much saline with the water may lead to irritation problems with the nasal passage. |
| Improves your breathing habits by limiting congestion problems. | If the device is not cleaned thoroughly, it will not be effective. It may lead you to an additional infection if you just put the uncleaned water source of the neti pot in your nose. |
| No need for stimulation or over-the-counter medication because a neti pot is ready to serve you | Don’t use this device excessively. Because at that moment, you may face severe irritation problems with your nose. And if you face that, consider contacting your healthcare center or doctor. |
| Proven healthy and recommended by many health experts, | |
| Using bottled water is always preferred with a neti pot. |
Final Thoughts:
Lastly, bottled or cleaned filtered water is always preferred with your neti pot. It doesn’t harm your nostrils or cause any type of infection or irritation problems. But the best thing would always be consulting your family or any doctor before he advises you on using anything like this. Also, be careful while using the neti pot with the children as they have very sensitive skin and might get infected with infection sooner than a grown human.
Hence, that was all for today. Let’s see you at the next one!
References:
- Parker-Pope, T. (2012). Rare Infection Prompts Neti Pot Warning. [online] Well. Available at: https://archive.nytimes.com/well.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/09/03/rare-infection-prompts-neti-pot-warning/
- Cleveland Clinic. (2021). What Are Neti Pots, and Do They Work? [online] Available at: https://health.clevelandclinic.org/what-are-neti-pots-and-do-they-work/
- May, A. (n.d.). What water is safe to use in a neti pot, and more tips to avoid getting sick. [online] USA TODAY. Available at: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/health/2018/12/10/after-brain-eating-amoeba-death-what-water-safe-neti-pot/2263240002/
- Sowerby, L.J. and Wright, E.D., 2012, July. Tap water or “sterile” water for sinus irrigations: what are our patients using?. In International forum of allergy & rhinology (Vol. 2, No. 4, pp. 300-302). Hoboken: Wiley Subscription Services, Inc., A Wiley Company.
