Wax build-up in your ears is usually harmless in and of itself — but it can actually trigger a number of problems, including dulled hearing, ringing in the ears, earache and sometimes even infection. The wax itself is not inherently dangerous, but the tactics many people use to remove it from the ear may cause problems.
There’s a reason we have wax in our ears, so it doesn’t have to be removed unless it’s causing a particular problem, I was told by Richard Rosenfeld, MD, ear, nose and throat specialist and chairman of the department of otolaryngology at Long Island College Hospital in New York. “Earwax is produced by the body — sometimes in excess — as a normal secretion in response to a non-bacterial infection. It protects the skin in the ear canal from bacterial overgrowth, prevents secondary infection and also helps maintain a healthy balance of ‘good’ bacteria,” he said.
“The ear has a natural cleaning mechanism,” Dr. Rosenfeld told me. Wax and dead skin migrate out of the ear canal automatically, helped by jaw movement during chewing. Small hairs growing from the skin in the ear canal carry excess wax out of the ear. It is best to leave the system alone and let it work. Dr. Rosenfeld told me that many people injure their ears when using cotton swaps to clean them out. “This just pushes the wax in deeper, creating more of a problem,” he said. “There’s a reason why the label says to not put Q-tips in your ear canal! There’s no benefit to doing this and it can, in fact, trigger infection.”
Dr. Rosenfeld has lots of easy, helpful suggestions on how you can safely keep earwax from building up, if this is a problem for you…
Commercially available products include “earwax removal kits” and non-prescription drops, both sold at your local supermarket or drugstore.
For natural cleaning options, you can use mineral oil or hydrogen peroxide. Tilt your head to the side. Using a dropper, slowly drip a few drops of mineral oil into the ear. This softens the wax, helping it to come out easily. Massage the oil into the ear and then tilt your head the opposite way so it drips out. Or you could put a few drops in the ear before bed, for three or four days, which will also help it ease its way out. Over-the-counter hydrogen peroxide is another alternative which softens wax. Dr. Rosenfeld suggests using it at half-strength, mixed with an equal amount of water. Make sure that anything you put in your ear canal is body temperature, he adds — liquids that are too hot or too cold may cause dizziness. Dr. Rosenfeld also suggests using a nasal aspirator, the small bulb-syringes commonly used to clean out the noses of babies, as these can help flush out excess wax.
Note: These techniques should not be used by people with a perforated eardrum or a hole in the eardrum caused by frequent ear infections. (Here’s how to tell: If, when you put drops or water in your ears, you can taste the solution dripping down the back of your throat, you have a perforation.) Also, people who have diabetes should never self-treat as they are prone to certain kinds of infections that can be very serious, notes Dr. Rosenfeld.
A few readers have asked me for information about a popular “alternative” technique for earwax removal, called ear candling. Ear candling is a practice in which the patient lies on his side while a practitioner places a hollow candle in the ear. The heat and suction created by the candle is believed to draw wax and impurities from the ear, but this has never been proven scientifically. Dr. Rosenfeld said ear candling can be unsafe and is in fact “explicitly discouraged by the FDA.” “People have suffered serious problems including burns and perforation of the eardrum. It’s a questionable treatment of no known benefit,” says Dr. Rosenfeld.
If you find that excess earwax is an ongoing issue, it may be a sign of an underlying problem such as Candida albicans (yeast overgrowth). A naturopathic physician can help diagnose and treat this condition. If earwax accumulates to the point that it becomes impacted and causes hearing loss, Dr. Rosenfeld suggests that it be removed by an ear, nose and throat specialist.
