Most people approach ear wax removal incorrectly. Twirling cotton-tipped swabs into your ears not only wastes your time and resources but can cause lasting damage to both hearing and ears.
Avoid home remedies like ear candles that are both ineffective and potentially hazardous, including these two articles from Consumer Reports. Discover why they shouldn’t be tried.
1. They Don’t Remove Earwax
Earwax may appear gross, but it serves many vital purposes. From protecting against dirt, dust and insects to having antibacterial properties and helping lubricate the ear canal so it does not dry out and become itchy – all are beneficial functions that earwax serves.
Cerumen impaction occurs when too much cerumen builds up in your ears, leading to issues like infection and hearing loss.
Cotton swabs may seem like an effective and efficient solution, yet many people still reach for them as an easy and quick way to remove earwax from their ears. Unfortunately, though it might appear that way at first, pushing cotton swabs into your ear canal only moves the wax around rather than actually dislodging it, according to an otolaryngologist at Providence Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica, California. Furthermore, over-agitating the process may cause infection or even damage the canal altogether if poked/scraped too aggressively!
Ear canals have a distinct shape with multiple slopes to help push out excess earwax naturally, thanks to chewing movements and skin inside the canals. If too much build-up accumulates, you should consult with either a primary care physician or an audiologist about safe removal options such as irrigation or microsuction.
Irrigating the ears typically involves using a rubber bulb syringe to gently inject water or saline solution into the ear canal, flushing out loose earwax and helping it dissolve. Prior to beginning this procedure, however, you should use some softening drops that can increase results.
Manual suction is another effective means of extracting earwax, and typically safer and more effective than trying to manually pull out or use other home remedies on it yourself. Though painful, manual suction should generally be safer and more effective than pulling at it with your fingers or using other home remedies – but only seek professional assistance if your earwax buildup causes pain, drainage or dizziness.
2. They Damage the Ear Canal
The ear canal is extremely delicate, and must remain free from foreign debris in order to function optimally. Unfortunately, this can lead to buildups of earwax that people feel compelled to remove using cotton swabs or similar devices – however this removal of natural substances actually isn’t required and may do more damage than good.
Earwax is produced in the ear canal to remove dead skin cells and protect the eardrum from infection, while also acting as a lubricant that keeps dirt out of your inner ear canal. However, too much earwax production can clog or block your canal, also known as ceruminosis; to alleviate the pain associated with ceruminosis try using home remedies such as mineral oil mixed with warm water drops to soften up any hardened earwax build-up.
Cotton swabs can cause serious harm to both the ear canal and eardrum in children, particularly due to scraping or scratching, irritated and itchy ears, plus further pushing in earwax deeper into the canal which could create blockages that impair hearing.
Cotton swabs can cause more than discomfort; they can also lead to serious ear infections that require medical intervention. Otolaryngologists (ear, nose and throat specialists) strongly advise against the use of cotton swabs when cleaning ears.
While it’s essential to clean out excess earwax on occasion, never attempt to completely clear out the entire ear canal. Doing so could result in buildups of earwax that impair hearing or cause ruptured eardrums. For safe removal of earwax use a cloth or small rubber suction tube designed to gently loosen and extract it out of your ears or visit an otolaryngologist who employs special tools that clean without harming any tissue in the process as well as advice on preventing future buildups of buildups in future.
3. They Can Injure the Ear
Ear canal and eardrum are delicate organs that need special care, with inserting cotton swabs into them potentially leading to serious harm. Cotton swab can rupture an eardrum, damage skin tissue and remove moisture necessary for self-cleaning in ears.
Your eardrum is an integral component of the body, helping your ears self-clean themselves while protecting the inner ear from infections. An eardrum is the thin membrane separating your outer and middle ears that converts sound waves into vibrations transmitted via your ear canal to your middle ear, where they produce sounds you hear. Furthermore, an eardrum prevents water, debris and bacteria from entering into your middle ear, which could potentially lead to infections if allowed into its chambers.
Though earwax may appear messy, its role is essential for healthy ears. Earwax serves many functions; protecting the ear canal from dirt and bacteria build-up as well as keeping water levels balanced within it and eliminating dead skin cells from build up in the canal. If there’s too much build up of earwax in your ears it is wise to visit a physician who can use an irrigation process to safely and without risk to either canal or drum remove it for you.
Many people are prone to reaching for the cotton swab when their ears begin producing excessive earwax or the wax becomes hard and difficult to remove naturally. Unfortunately, inserting cotton swabs directly into your ears can actually increase earwax production; furthermore it may irritate the ear canal leading to blockages that result in more build-up of wax and possibly lead to an impaction of wax in your canals.
If your earwax is hard to remove, or there’s too much of it for you, try these home remedies to help remove it more effectively. First, warm some lukewarm water or add a few drops of olive or mineral oil before trying to take out. Finally, gently wipe your cloth over it all for best results.
At the end of the day, it’s best to leave earwax alone and save cotton swabs for cleaning your hair or applying drops to treat an earache. If you experience fullness in your ears or ringing in them, visit an audiologist for safe and effective earwax removal.
4. They Can Cause Hearing Loss
Many people make the habit of using cotton-tipped swabs to dig out “earwax” from their ear canal, thinking this will remove it completely. Unfortunately, not only is this practice ineffective; instead it may actually push more wax deeper into the canal where it becomes lodged against the ear drum, leading to hearing loss, infections and other health complications – in a Ford Hospital study over half of patients seen at an otolaryngology clinic had suffered tympanic membrane perforations caused by cotton-swab use!
The ear canal contains cells that produce cerumen to self-clean itself; however, this process isn’t always effective and people often end up with excess earwax that causes hearing loss, dizziness, itching and other symptoms. Some individuals may be genetically predisposed to developing excessive earwax while other are more prone to donning it due to age and other factors.
Cotton swabs (commonly referred to as cotton buds) are small pieces of cotton wrapped tightly around a spindle made of wood, paper or more recently plastic and often feature an end cap designed to protect its spindle from protruding out and puncturing an eardrum. Cotton buds serve a similar function.
The eardrum is highly vulnerable, and even minor contact with cotton swabs such as those used for cotton swapping can rupture it, leading to painful infections and hearing loss. Therefore, it’s vital that no foreign objects such as swabs enter your ear canal, including cotton-tipped ones. If there’s excess earwax present, see an audiologist for assistance in safely extracting it using non-risky methods – for instance using over-the-counter removal products with glycerin or mineral oil that soften the wax so it moves out naturally over time – or consult your audiologist regarding other safe methods to extract earwax from your ears!
