About Sinus Irrigators

Sinus irrigators are a game changer for anyone who gets allergies and sinus infections. They clean out your sinuses by shooting clean warm water and saline through them. The water enters through one nostril and exits through the other. My personal belief is if you irrigate very soon after being exposed to COVID, it just might rid you of it before it gets a chance to get established in your body. Obviously don’t count on that and please use this as an additional precaution not in place of wearing a mask rated N95 or higher and avoiding potential exposures to the virus. I also believe irrigating will probably make your case of COVID less severe and make you less infectious if you do catch it than if you are not irrigating. (Let me know if you have any evidence that proves otherwise!)

Look for an electric nasal irrigator that has a pulsing action. If you currently use a saline spray bottle or a Neti Pot, that’s great, because using a an electric irrigator will be an easy upgrade for you. However, don’t think- “Oh I already have a Neti Pot, I don’t need this.” Electric irrigators do a much better job at cleaning out your sinuses.

This irrigator one is my travel irrigator. It’s not quite as good as the others I have tried, but it’s good enough to get the job done and it’s a good use of precious suitcase / bathroom counter space.

This duel nostril irrigator has a very unique and cool design.  I like that the dirty water is collected inside the irrigator rather than dripping from your nose into your sink. This seems like it could be a good choice for someone who shares a bathroom with other people. It’s also great for someone who is bedridden. You can purchase it here.

This last one is the best of the all the ones I have tried, but you may not be able to get one. The makers of it now sell this one which isn’t as good as the one pictured here, but it is the best currently easily available one that I have tested myself.

Don’t let an amoebae eat your brain! 
Only distilled or boiled water should be used to irrigate because tap water can contain bacteria. The FDA has warned that using improperly purified water for nasal irrigation can lead to infections or even brain eating amoebae! You’ll need to boil tap water (five and a half minutes in the microwave works for me) and let it cool until it is just warm or use distilled water so that no bad stuff in the water gets shot into your nose. These bacteria are not a problem when you’re drinking tap water because they are destroyed by the acid in your stomach. But, when sprayed directly into the nose, they bacteria can grow. You also need to warm the water (30 seconds in the microwave works for me) and dissolve the sinus rinse packets (the # of packets used per fill will depend on the size of your irrigator) into the water before you use it. Follow the instructions for which ever one you get to irrigate through your nose. If you use clean and warm water with sinus rinse packets nasal irritation feels really good. If you skip any of these steps it will be very uncomfortable/painful and can cause dangerous health problems like the scarey amoebaes pictured above eating away at your brain zombie style!

Keep it clean

Clean the inside and outside of your irrigation device with soap and tap water. This step is important to remove particle matter like mucus and other grime. It will allow the subsequent disinfectant to work more optimally. Disinfect the device in one of two ways (both of which destroy bacteria and viruses including COVID-19) Boil all components of the device in water for five minutes or rinse the inside of the device and clean the rest of it with 70% isopropyl alcohol. Leave open to air dry.

You can buy my favorite sinus rinse packets here.  Use them with room temperature / warm sterilized water and a hydropulse nasal irrigator like the ones above. You may find them in store at CVS or Walgreens as well. Whatever sinus rinse packets you use, be sure to follow the directions on the # of packets per ounce of water closely.

Boil your saline container and spoon / mixing utensil for 10 minutes or clean them in the dishwasher to sterilize them prior to use (see scary amoebae pic above!).The water should feel good going through your sinuses. The wrong ratio of non-iodized salt to water or hot or cold temps will make it painful / unpleasant.

DYI Saline Formulation Recipe:

Add these ingredients to a clean container (I make mine directly in a clean glass measuring cup) and stir well before adding your formulation to your irrigator.

• 2 cups of distilled or boiled water (at room temperature or slightly warmer)
• 1 teaspoon of non-iodized salt (required)
• 1 teaspoon xylitol crystals (optional)Bonus Ingredient:
• 2-3 drops of grapefruit seed extract (optional)