When you notice wax in your ears or feel like your ears are clogged or full, it’s tempting to grab a Q-tip from your medicine cabinet and use it to try to remove whatever’s in your ear. However, this is not safe and can negatively affect your ear health – despite the satisfying feeling you may get from removing that wax.
To help you take better care of your ears, let’s discuss why Q-TIPS can be dangerous and what you should use to remove earwax.
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Why Q-TIPS Can Be Dangerous for Your Ears
A cotton swab, also known as a Q-Tip, is the most common device used to clean ears. Its shortcomings illustrate the fundamental problems with using this type of tool to remove earwax.
Because of their long, narrow shape, Q-TIPS are more likely to push earwax into the top of your ear than to pull it out. If you try to use them to clean your ear canal, you risk simply compacting the earwax and creating a blockage that makes it harder to hear.
Worse still, if you push the Q-Tip too hard or too far into your ear canal, you can actually pierce your eardrum. The ear canal is only about an inch (2.5 centimeters) deep , so there’s not much margin for error. One ear, nose, and throat specialist previously spoke to CNET about patients who have even severely damaged their eardrums by answering the phone with a Q-tip sticking out of one ear. That’s a phone call that can really ruin your day.
In general, it’s best to use cotton swabs — or even just a tissue or a damp, clean rag — to clean the outer part of the ear outside the canal.
How to safely clean your ears
As gross as we think it is, earwax is actually essential to the health of your ears. According to Harvard Medical School, it not only lubricates your ear canal and protects your eardrum, it also has antibacterial and antifungal properties. It also protects against harmful buildup by collecting dead skin cells and dirt as it gradually makes its way into your outer ear.
In other words, earwax makes your ears naturally self-cleaning. In most cases, you don’t need to go into your ear canals or do anything to clean them—they’ll do the work themselves.
Some people produce more earwax than others, and this can lead to an excessive buildup, causing discomfort or hearing problems. Hearing aid wearers in particular can suffer from excessive earwax buildup caused by the extra vibrations in their ears. Regardless of the cause, if you are experiencing earwax buildup, it is important to see a doctor and assess the best course of treatment.
If your doctor gives the thumbs up, there are some DIY ear cleaning methods that can be done safely and effectively:
- Wipe with a damp washcloth : This is the safest and best method of all. You can’t reach into the ear canal with your finger, and usually, a damp cloth will gently rub around the outside of it to remove any earwax buildup.
- Rinse your ear canal: If you think you might have some stubborn earwax lodged in your ear canal, you can often rinse it out, per Harvard Medical School. Soak a cotton ball in warm water, saline, mineral oil, or hydrogen peroxide, then hold it over your ear canal and lean your opposite ear against the floor. After letting it drip and soak in the wax for about a minute, tilt your head upside down and let the softened wax drain out.
- Try over-the-counter ear drops: These drops serve much the same “ear irrigation” function as the above method, but they may also come with a dropper or bulb syringe. Doctors recommend avoiding a syringe if you have a ruptured eardrum, as this can allow water into the middle ear and put you at risk for a serious infection.
How not to clean your ears
While the above earwax removal methods can be done safely, there are some popular tools and techniques that you should avoid. They may be popular on social media, but that doesn’t mean they’re safe for your ears.
- Ear candling : Ear candling kits, which have become popular in recent years, claim to soften and draw out wax by lighting a flame on a long funnel that you insert into your ear canal. According to Consumer Reports, this method is highly questionable among doctors. The Food and Drug Administration has long advised against the use of ear candling due to the risk of burns and punctures.
- Ear cleaning kits that can dig deep into your ear : Some kits offer tiny spatula-like or drill-shaped tools that promise to pull wax out of your ear canal. However, doctors urge caution with these types of tools. Some can dig dangerously deep into your canal, while others are sharp enough to cut your ear canal.
- Any sharp objects : As mentioned above, it’s best to avoid anything sharp, whether it’s a store-bought tool or bobby pins. Cuts can cause bleeding and scarring, which can interfere with hearing and expose you to infection.
Who shouldn’t clean their ears at home?
Those with diabetes or who rely on blood thinners should be especially careful about cleaning their ears. These conditions make it harder to stop bleeding, and it’s especially problematic if there are tiny cuts inside the ear from cleaning it too roughly.
However, they’re not the only people who should think twice before digging into their ears. In most cases, it’s best to leave cleaning your ear canals to the professionals. They have better tools and a better view, and they can help you safely remove earwax.
The safest way to keep your ears clean is to dampen a cloth with warm water and wipe around the outer ear. Warm water is best because it will help to “degrease” the area. You can also use the irrigation method to rinse your ear. While you might think that the long, narrow shape of a Q-TIP makes it the most effective way to clean your ear, its design can cause injury, especially if the Q-Tip is pushed in too deeply.
Although earwax may seem gross, removing it is actually not necessary. This waxy substance plays a key role in keeping the inner parts of your ear protected and lubricated. You should only consider removing earwax if it is causing pain or some degree of hearing loss.
