4 Ear Cleaning Tips

Our ears secrete a natural waxy substance which allowed them to self-clean throughout our evolutionary history. However, thanks to hearing loss and occupational hazards, the modern world often requires us to put devices in our ear canals, potentially blocking this cleaning process from working as nature intended. Earplugs and hearing aids can prevent the transport of waxy debris out of the ear, possibly leading to a blockage. It’s a good idea, therefore, for at-risk people to clean their ears. But how? Check out these four tips for effectively cleaning your ears without damaging them.

Do not use cotton buds

Although cotton buds look like they are the perfect shape for removing excess wax from your ears, professionals warn against using them. The problem with cotton buds (and any other rigid device that you might use to similar effect) is that they can push wax further up the ear canal and up against the eardrum. The wax can then stiffen and harden, making it more difficult to remove and blocking sound waves from reaching the middle ear. Impacted ear wax, as medics call it, requires special tools to remove and may necessitate a visit to a hearing health professional. If you want to avoid this, it is best to stick with recommended ear cleaning techniques.

Use over-the-counter solutions

Over-the-counter solutions are products that you pour into the ear canal designed to soften and dislodge earwax. These solutions are recommended by hearing health professionals because they can safely and effectively remove earwax from the ear without the need for tools (which could potentially damage sensitive parts of the ear, like the eardrum). Over-the-counter solutions are made of a variety of substances including mineral oil, baby oil, glycerin, hydrogen peroxide, and salt-water. All manufacturers provide instructions. Usually, you have to place the specified number of drops of the solution into the ear, wait for it to do its work, then drain and rinse your ear.

Avoid candling

Ear candles are devices that insert into the ear and are lit at one end, causing ear wax to be sucked up into them. Hearing health professionals recommend that you avoid ear candles. Although it sounds as if ear candles should work in theory (by melting the wax or something similar), this is not how they work in reality. Instead, they expose the sensitive lining of your ear canal and middle ear to high temperatures which could result in burning and hearing loss. Studies show that ear candles are not an effective way to remove excess wax from the ear.

Use ear syringes

Although the word “syringe” isn’t particularly appealing, ear syringes have no sharp parts. Instead, an ear syringe is a device that you can use to deliver a saline solution or water to the ear canal easily. Ear syringes are not a stand-alone treatment for ear cleaning. Syringes are only useful when used in combination with other therapies, such as over-the-counter solutions. Ear syringes help to both deliver the wax-removing compounds as well as flush out the ears after treatment.