Homemade Sinus Wash-- Money Saver!

Irrigating your sinuses is an excellent way to relieve colds, allergies and rhinitis. Sinus irrigation was the only thing that got me through a horrible case of pregnancy rhinitis. I have allergies, so I still irrigate 1-2 (or more) times a day. There are two ways to irrigate: there's the Neti Pot, then there's the bottle. Which one you'll prefer is completely up to the individual.

Very cost-effective:

A box of pre-packaged sinus rinse packets is about $10 for 100 packets. You can make your own for just a fraction of the cost. I bought my extra fine sea salt in bulk at a local health food store at $0.86/per pound! I scooped up a big bag full, and walked out having spent just $1.09. A container of baking soda is about $0.50. This mixture makes more than 4 cups!

Here's what I found works:

Mixure: 3 parts extra fine sea salt to
             1 to 1 1/4 parts baking soda 

Open a big ziploc bag, dump in your salt (in this case, 3 cups) and baking soda (I started with 1 cup), close the bag and shake it like mad.

Fill your bottle or Neti pot with lukewarm water, testing the temperature against your inner wrist.

 

Next, measure 1 rounded teaspoonful of your mixture and dump into your bottle or Neti Pot.

Replace lid and shake for a second or two. After that, rinse just as you would with any other wash. If it burns when you use this ratio, simply add more baking soda to the mixture.