Has anyone out there used a neti pot on board ship?

[Bug & Sprouts]

I got a netti pot 5-6 years ago at the recommendation of the doctor I saw for sinus/allergy issues. Im a dog groomer who is allergic to dogs and cats and also allergic to just about anything that is green and grows outside. It works great for washing the pollen and hair out of my sinuses. When I got it, even back then before the news had said anyone had died from the tap water issue, I was warned to ONLY use bottled (not necessarily distilled) because of the risk with tap water.She actually told me people had been hospitalized and a few had died from using tap water from diff parts of the country.

 

So it has been an isssue for awhile, just not publicized. The ships water should be just fine as it is purified better than most bottled water. But it is your choice to use what your comfortable with.

[alreadypacked]

I used tap water for years - mixed it with sea salt and used a plastic oral syringe to spray salt water into the nostrils (neti pot did nothing for me...just a passive water flow that couldn't get through my congested sinuses). Then my ENT recommended NeilMed sinus rinse, and I still use it occasionally, also with tap water. I finally had sinus surgery (septoplasty/turbinectomy) in June, which has helped tremendously. So I probably won't bother bringing the sinus rinse bottle on my cruise, but if I did, I'd just use it with tap water - on a cruise ship, it's safer/cleaner than on land anyway. I read the article about the amoeba, and it's worth noting that both victims were from Louisiana - just because one water source became contaminated (in a state that's in dire need of upgrading their water infrastructure) doesn't mean tap water everywhere is unsafe.

 

The coincidence of both victims being from Louisiana registered with me also, eventually. At first, I was wary, but then I thought about the fact that I had been using my neti pot with tap water for almost 2 years with no problem. Also, my dad had been using tap water for over 40 years with no incident. I think I'll just use the tap on my upcoming cruises.

 

The risk of Naegleria fowleri infection is extremely low according to the CDC (and most got it by swimming in fresh water lakes or rivers):

 

The risk of Naegleria fowleri infection is very low. There have been 32 reported infections in the U.S. in the 10 years from 2002 to 2011, despite millions of recreational water exposures each year. By comparison, in the ten years from 1996 to 2005, there were more than 36,000 drowning deaths in the U.S.

 

And...

 

Naegleria fowleri infections are very rare. In the 10 years from 2002 to 2011, 32 infections were reported in the U.S. Of those cases, 28 people were infected by contaminated recreational water, two people were infected by water from a contaminated, geothermal (naturally hot), untreated drinking water supply, and two people were infected after performing nasal irrigation using contaminated tap water.

[alreadypacked]

I've used the ship tap water without a problem, but if there is a coffee maker available I run the water through first. The brain amoeba thing scared me and now I use my tea maker/ water boiler. Maybe you could get one of these http://www.amazon.com/Travel-Immersion-Water-Heater-Voltage/dp/B000AXS0UE for your cruise?

 

Interesting idea, but I wonder if that would be a prohibited item for a cruise?

[planktin]

Interesting idea, but I wonder if that would be a prohibited item for a cruise?

 

Someone above pointed out it would be prohibited.:o I figured if coffee makers were allowed that one of those would be, as well. Maybe your cabin will have a coffee maker that you can use, or your steward can find a spare for you to use.