Neti Pot Salt | How To Choose

Using Neti pot for cleansing nasal passages is one of the methods used in yoga for hundreds of years. This method is being used in India as an everyday routine along with brushing the teeth. Nasal cleansing using netipot has become popular in the modern world along with yoga. The acceptance of usage of neti pot as one of the methods to keep personal hygiene of nasal passages by the medical fraternity is rapidly increasing the popularity of the neti pot to the Western world. Nasal irrigation with neti pot is being recommended by the physicians as either a primary treatment or in addition to some medications to sinonasal symptoms like allergic rhinitis.

For irrigation warm water is used in neti pot mixed with salt. Importance should be given in selection of the type of salt used in netipot. Traditionally, pure salt is used for nasal irrigation. Warm water is used because it is very stimulating than cold water. Hot water should not be used as it is very dangerous and could burn the nasal passages. For the preparation of salt solution for irrigation of nasal passages with netipot, one spoon of salt is used for one pot full of water or 5 g of salt in half a liter of water. You do not have to measure the salt used in the neti pot using an electronic scale as it is not a dangerous medication, but some ready to use neti pot salt available in the market is measured and easy to use.

Though traditionally pure salt is being used for jalneti kriya (nasal irrigation), different types of salts are recommended by experts according to their personal experience which sometimes is disputed by the conservative practitioners of neti pot irrigation. Many teachers of yoga including my own teacher always recommend pure salt without any chemical additives, anti caking agents, and not even iodized salts.

In spite of strong recommendation of pure common salt available in nature, most the the teachers are not strictly against the other type of salts used netipot nasal cleansing. The other types of salts used in neti pot include macrobiotic salt, vegetable salt, rock salt, kosher salt, and table salt. Macrobiotic salt is dull white to grayish white in color. This salt is imported mainly from Asian countries and Australia and is unrefined pure sea salt. Vegetable salt is a salt where herbs and spices are mixed in it. This salt may be good for cooking but certainly not for net pot cleansing. Rock salt is not recommended as the purity and mineral content depends on the place of origin and may not be good for the mucus in the nose. Cooking salt can be used as this is just a pure salt. Table salt contains lot of additives, so may not be useful just something called neti cleansing which mostly depend on natural cleansing. Kosher salt is just common pure salt and can be used.