Is There A Vacuum Effect From Ear Candling
One published in Laryngoscope denies that any vacuum effect takes place as a result of lighting an ear wax candle, and that ear candling is more likely to result in wax deposits dripping into the ear. In their study, tympanometric measurements in an ear canal model demonstrated that ear candles do not produce negative pressure.
How Dangerous Is Micro
Recently we have received a few questions about the safety of micro-suction for ear wax removal. I think this is because the procedure is so prevalent. To respond to the questions I did some research into medical studies undertaken around micro-suction ear wax removal. Unfortunately, there are very few in existence.
In the study Aural microsuction for wax impaction: survey of efficacy and patient perception a study that was undertaken with 159 patients. It was found that although a few people suffered from some pain and or vertigo, “Aural microsuction is well tolerated. Side effects are mild, and the prior use of cerumenolytics appears to further reduce their severity”. That is really the only live study involving Patients I could find.
One of the things that some people have mentioned is the onset of tinnitus and even the onset of permanent hearing loss where there was none before as a result of micro-suction ear wax removal. There is very little evidence out there that supports the claims.
I don’t doubt the veracity of the people who make those claims, but looking at the studies and searching the journals and internet they are exceptionally rare events. So rare in fact that there is no mentions in medical journals. In general, ear wax removal by micro-suction is a safe procedure, however, as I said, with any medical procedure, there are things that may go wrong.
Tips On Safe Earwax Removal
Dont use any small objects to clean your ears
As we mentioned earlier, doctors recommend not using anything smaller than your elbow to clean your ears. The reason behind this is that small objects, even semi-soft ones like cotton swabs, can easily puncture your eardrum. Eardrums are easily punctured because there is only a thin layer of skin that protects them.
Have a doctor remove excessive earwax buildup
The safest way to remove earwax is to have a doctor do it. Medical professionals know the safest way to remove any blockages, and they have the correct tools to help them do it. Plus, if you have any questions about future buildups or health concerns about your ears, you can ask them during your appointment.
Use earwax softener
A common way to clean your ears safely involves an earwax softener. You can buy an earwax softener kit at your local pharmacy. The kit usually uses a type of oil or hydrogen peroxide to soften the wax. Follow the instructions on the package to soften and remove earwax. Ask your doctor if you have any questions about which earwax softener you should use.
Avoid ear cleaning devices like candles, picks, or spiral tools
Try an ear irrigation syringe
If you develop an earache, ringing in your ear or hearing issues, you could have earwax buildup in your ear. Schedule a visit with your doctor if you need help cleaning your ears or have any questions about your ear health.
Read Also: Does Homeowners Insurance Cover Hearing Aid Loss
Safety And Side Effects
According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration , using lit candles in close proximity to a person’s face is dangerous and carries “a high risk of causing potentially severe skin/hair burns and middle ear damage”, even when they are used according to the manufacturer’s directions.
Serious potential risks involved in ear candling include:
- Burns and damage to the ear, skin, and hair from the hot wax
- Obstruction or blockage of the ear canal due to wax dripping into the ear
- Wax deposits in the ear
- Otitis externa
The most frequently reported adverse effect of ear candling is a burn, either from the candle flame or from the hot wax.
In a case report published in Canadian Family Physician, a 50-year old woman had pieces of candle wax in her ear, a perforation in her eardrum, and hearing loss after an ear candling session. The practitioner had spilled melted candle wax into her ear when attempting to remove the candle.
The authors of the case report concluded that ear candling “can do more harm than good and we recommend that GPs discourage its use.”
People with existing tympanic membrane perforation should not try ear candling. Children and babies are at increased risk of injuries and complications.
Some practitioners use the paper or foil plate to catch dripping wax. Some also use a towel or cloth for additional protection against any dripping wax. Even with these precautions, however, there are serious risks. There is also the risk that lit ear candles can start a fire.
What Causes The Build
Although ear wax normally moves out of the ear naturally, there are a number of factors that can cause it to build up and require removal. A build-up can be due to excessive hair in the ear or an unusual ear canal anatomy everyones ear canal is unique and if yours is bendy or narrow it can make it difficult for wax to naturally be removed.
The use of cotton buds or other foreign objects like bobby pins for ear wax removal can also cause a build-up. This is because they can actually push wax further down into your ear canal, which results in wax impaction. Even more alarmingly, using these items can increase the risk of puncturing your eardrum, which can cause severe pain and even hearing loss. Inner-ear headphones can also cause wax to build up, so the use of over-the-ear headphones is recommended instead.
Also Check: How To Turn On Hearing Aid Mode On Iphone
What Do I Think About Ear Candling Now
It was disappointing to find out we werent extracting wax out of our ears. But I had heard that this was a myth before, so I wasnt all too surprised. I definitely think ear candling is a good practice for softening ear wax, especially if you tend to get buildup. After my husbands ear candling, we flushed his ears out with warm water and we were able to flush out a ton of wax. Yeah, not gonna take pictures of that one! Also, my son mentioned that he felt his ear draining while doing the ear candling, so thats a good thing.What do you think? Are you surprised or have you always known that ear candles dont really extract wax? Will you continue or start to use ear candles now? Tell me your thoughts below!
How To Remove Earwax
In order to remove earwax in a safe way, you need to understand the common methods available to you. The first thing that many people think of when it comes to getting rid of earwax is a cotton swab however, did you know that cotton swabs can actually cause more problems than they fix?
Sure, it seems simple, you take the cotton swab and poke it into your ear and remove the wax, right? Wrong!! If you were to look inside your ear, youd actually see that the cotton swab pushes the wax further into your ear canal. Every time you use a cotton swab, you push a little more earwax into your ear canal and over time that wax builds up. Theres even a chance you could puncture your eardrum entirely. Its not just cotton swabs either. You should always avoid putting anything larger than your finger into your ear.
So, instead of poking things into your ear, how do you remove earwax or clean your ears properly? To start with, well discuss some common, over-the-counter products that clean your ears without any risk of damage.
1. Hydrogen peroxide
Perhaps the most common way to clean your ears, hydrogen peroxide will soften and loosen earwax. This makes it easy for the earwax to drain out of your ear too.
2. Irrigation
You can buy a kit at your local pharmacy to irrigate your ears and flush out the earwax. Your ears are naturally designed to allow the wax to drain on its own, using an irrigation kit can help the process along.
3. Homemade irrigating solution
Don’t Miss: Can You Make A Candle From Ear Wax
Limitations Of Micro Suction
There are few limitations or cons of micro suction earwax removal, microscopes or loupes if used provide a narrow view. However, it just means that we re-adjust our positioning so we can get the view we need. Micro suction ear wax removal is regarded as being exceptionally safe and well tolerated. However no treatment of ear wax is completely risk-free. Like other ear wax removal methods there is a possibility of :
Damage and trauma to the ear canal and eardrum, this is an exceptionally rare event that is usally caused by a sudden movement by the customer.
Micro suction can be a bit noisy because of the suction, however newer suction pumps are much quieter.
As we said, safe, comfortable and with little or no risk when undertaken by an experienced and qualified professional, if you are looking for ear wax removal in Dublin or across Ireland, call us on 1800 848 888 or book online now.
Ear Candling A Popular Method For Removing Earwax Might Not Be Up To Snuff
A buildup of earwax and the muffled hearing that usually accompanies it ranks among one of the most annoying sensations out there. And since manually removing earwax with a cotton swab is not recommended, there arent many other DIY options available.
Enter ear candling, which often is marketed as a safe, natural method for removing earwax. Spoiler alert: Its not.
The ear candling technique requires lighting one end of a hollow, cone-shaped candle on fire and placing the opposite end into the ear canal. Its held there for about 15 minutes. Afterward, you can usually find a brown, wax-like substance in the remaining stub, which proponents believe to be a mixture of earwax and dirt. Some fans claim that the candle creates a low-level vacuum, which sucks out excess earwax and debris from the canal. Others believe that the heat just softens the wax, making it more likely to fall out.
Don’t Miss: How To Teach Yourself American Sign Language
The Company Says It Removes The Excess Wax From Your Ears But Does It Really
If you have a problem with excessive wax in your ears, then you know it can be annoying and sometimes a little painful. And using a Q-tip certainly doesn’t help. As a matter of fact, putting a Q-tip or anything else in your ear is just plain bad.
A few years ago, an ear, nose and throat doctor told me that Q-tips are one of the most useless products ever made and they serve no purpose.
I have to see an ear, nose and throat specialist at least every couple of years, because over time the wax in my ears builds up so much, it has to be removed with a machine.
Well, it’s been almost two years since I had my last ear cleaning, which means it’s time to head back to the doctor’s office. But before I made my appointment, I saw this contraption on TV called the WaxVac, which is supposed to safely remove debris and moisture from your ear canal.
So I had to give it a try and I bought one for $19.07 in a nearby mall. But you can purchase a WaxVac on the company’s website for $10.
How Is Ear Candling Done
Ear candles are hollow tubes that are approximately 10 inches long. They are made of cotton or linen that has been wound tightly into a cone shape, soaked in beeswax, paraffin, or soy wax, and allowed to harden.
During an ear candling session, you lie down on one side with the ear to be treated facing up. The pointed end of the ear candle is usually inserted into a hole in a paper or foil plate and then into the external ear canal.
The candle is lit at the opposite end and held as the practitioner trims away the burnt material while the candle is burning.
After several minutes , the treatment ends and the ear candle stub is removed and extinguished. The outer ear is wiped clean with a cotton ball or pad.
Also Check: Which Composer Experienced Severe Hearing Loss During His Lifetime
Remove The Earwax Blockage With A Warm Cloth
This old-fashioned method involves heating the blockage to soften and remove it naturally. To do this, just heat a folded cloth with an iron. Once the cloth is warm enough, lie on your side and put your ear on it. Then, rinse your ear out with warm water using your shower head. You can also do the same thing with a damp cloth for even greater effectiveness .
Customer Reviews On Does Ear Candling Really Work
Well I just did a comparison as well. I burnt one candle without being in the ear. Much to my surprise, the color of the wax was the same, yet the amount was way less. I believe they are working.
I have tried it on numerous occasions & I am now totally convinced it does not & could not create enough of a suction to remove wax from the ear. What you see is residue from the candle, not ear wax. really I challenge anyone to get it tested! I developed a very unpleasant & painful ear infection when wax from the candle deposited on my eardrum. I promise you this does not work .
Kristina,
I have narrow ear canals too, and something Ive found enormously helpful in recent years is an ear pear. Its exactly like a pear for blowing out air to clean camera lenses and such like, but you can get it at a chemists. If I start to feel discomfort or infection in an ear, then I use this to squeeze water into the ear and sometimes the amount of grunge that comes out is quite shocking. You obviously need to be careful with the pointed end not to touch the sensitive tympanum!
Anyway, just an idea for your son.
It works fantastically! You should try it.
Ps I burned a candle by itself to see if same residue desired and it wasVERY different.
Read Also: How To Turn On Hearing Aid Mode On Iphone
How Ear Candles Work
Ear candles are thought to work through two different modes of action:
This is how ear candles are thought to have benefit.
But what do proper laboratory tests indicate?
Can ear candles do what proponents claim?
What Does Professional Ear Cleaning Involve
It depends on who’s doing it. If you’re having your ear cleaned out at the doctor’s, they may put ear drops in to soften the wax, then use a syringe or small hose to flush the ear out with water.
Ear, nose and throat specialists are more likely to use a small vacuum or some small instruments while they look in your ear with a microscope.
An ear-cleaning technique commonly offered by alternative therapists that is not recommended by medical professionals is ear candling.
This involves a hollow candle being placed in the ear, and the end not in your ear being lit.
The idea is that the candle creates a convection current to draw nasties out of your ear, but there’s a downside: it doesn’t work.
The current created by the heat of the candle isn’t enough to pull the earwax out of your ear. There are also risks associated with lighting candles next to your face.
So Dr Flanagan’s ear care advice to people who are otherwise healthy?
“Don’t even worry about it. Don’t even think about it. A little bit of earwax is good. It’s actually protective, it’s healthy,” he said.
“For your ears to produce a reasonable amount of earwax is important.”
Read Also: Are You Hungry In Sign Language
Does Does Ear Candling Really Work
No. Theres no hard evidence that the process would actually work the way practitioners say that it does. Theres not a lot of medical evidence showing that it actually removes anything from the ear.
Its been disproved quite effectively by letting the candle burn by itself and not inserting into an ear. The same residue is left over which pretty definitively proves that its not pulling anything from the ear, and if youre not careful might actually cause some of the debris to enter the ear.
Also, there is a chance that you might experience burns or other fire hazards if the process goes wrong. Seeing how theres potentially bad things that could happen to you, and very next to no good things that can come from this, its not recommended to even try it.
Our RecommendationAvoid ear candling as a way to clean out your ears. There are better ways to go about the process if you feel that there is too much earwax and other dirt and debris in your ears. If youre concerned about ear gunk build-up just ask your doctor at your next check up and see what they have to say. Most likely theyll say youre fine, but if they notice an excess of wax they may suggest a solution to soften it up for easier removal.
Ronten Earwax Removal Kit
The Ronten Earwax Removal Kit also contains 6 tools, 5 of which are made of 100% medical grade stainless steel. The two smallest tools are curettes. One of the tools is a spiral ear pick while another is a spring ear pick. What makes this set quite different from other similar kits is the presence of ear forceps and an LED ear pick.
The last tool is probably the most useful when cleaning out your kids ears. However, the LED ear pick is made of plastic and a bit on the flimsy side. The forceps are handy in case something gets stuck in your kids ear. But there arent any instructions to go with the kit so newbies will have to Google how to use each one properly.
Pros:
Don’t Miss: How To Treat Ear Infection During Pregnancy