If you use a neti pot – here's a really scary story...

Attention neti pot users. Beware of brain-eating amoeba! 

It sounds like a sci-fi horror movie, but according to Raoult Ratard, of the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals, our tap water is tainted. Just last year, 5 people in the U.S. were killed by a brain-eating amoeba. Two of those victims had used ordinary tap water in their neti pots. Neti pots are popular little teapot shaped vessels used to clean out the sinuses. The user fills it up with lukewarm water, tilts the head – and pours it into the upper nostril. The problem is that most tap water has some sort of amoebae in there that you’d rather not inject directly into your nasal passages and brain.

Death by neti pot is EXTREMELY rare – but not impossible. Dr. Ratard says we should use only sterile or distilled water in our neti pots. You can use tap water – but you’ll need to boil it first for 3 minutes to kill any monsters and then wait for it to cool. After using your pot, you’ll want to run it through the ultra-high temperature of a dishwasher to kill any cooties – and let it air-dry completely between uses.