everyday salt in neti pot?

[maheswari]

i have been using neti pot since long time
few days ago a yogi friend told me not to put salt everyday in the netipot, because salt every day on the long run dries small nasal passages
i have never read this before
is it true?

[BlueRaincoat]

Hello maheswari

The salt is added for comfort. In my experience, doing jala neti  without any salt at all is quite unpleasant. I think it's something to do with matching the saltiness of our internal fluids (since blood and lymph contain salt)

Here is an older forum topic called "salt free jala neti" - you might found something useful there.
http://www.aypsite.com/plus-forum/index.php?topic=5990

[maheswari]

Thank you Blueraincoat for your reply and the link  ;-)
So it seems to me that using water without salt is non sense...and that  my friend info isn't accurate
will stick to using salt everyday

[BlueRaincoat]

Your friend's warning is not surprising - we hear so many warnings these days that we consume way more salt than our bodies need.
I used to do jala neti daily years ago (these days I find that pranayama clears my nose passages just fine). If I were to start doing it again, I would try to find the lowest concentration of salt that makes the water comfortable to use and I'd stick to that amount. Moderation in everything as they say

[maheswari]

i just use a small pinch of salt in the pot
personally i cant do much paranayama anymore (over sensitive) and i never felt that pranayama stops nose allergy

[Blaskhyrk]

I was hearing and information in Dr. House that the water can get to the brain and cause some damages, is it true or only a fiction?

[BlueRaincoat]

Sounds unlikely.
However, what you say does remind me of cases of bacteria in water, passing through the membranes in the nose into the brain. There have been cases of people getting meningitis after swimming in water infested with certain type of bacteria. Perhaps this is what you heard in Dr. House?

[Chhinnamasta]

Use boiled or sterilized water, not tap! There were two documentaries cases of folks dying from using tap water that contained an amoeba called Naegleria fowleri.

I think Neti Pots come with that warning now, to either boil, run the water through a filter or use sterilized bottled.

[maheswari]

I do use bottled water never tap

[Radharani]

I believe BlueRaincoat is correct about the salt.  I personally prefer sea salt and only use a little bit, just the amount that feels comfortable (I had to experiment a little bit to find the right amount).  I tried using Himalayan salt for a while but it left a pinkish residue in my neti pot which made me wonder...  I do boil the water first after hearing about the rare but deadly Naegleria.