Why not root with a cotton swab?
Healthy ears always contain some earwax. Thousands of glands and the ear canal ensure that you create and remove enough of this protective layer. Sometimes things go wrong in this process and problems arise. Why do you have earwax and when does it bother you?
Earwax, medically called cerumen, is made by glands in the outer part of the ear canal. Together with sebum, hairs and skin flakes, it forms a sticky substance.
There are two types of earwax: Europeans and Africans have the moist type with a brownish-yellow color, in Asians it is greyish, dry and grainy. As you age, the color and consistency changes from golden yellow, creamy flakes to harder, darker and granular earwax.
Functions
The skin of the ear canal is thin and fragile. Earwax keeps this skin from drying out. In addition, it stops moisture, dirt, dust, insects, bacteria and fungi. The earwax catches these irregularities and carries them away.
Excess earwax disappears on its own. The skin of the ear canal renews itself from the eardrum towards the exit of the ear and thus takes the earwax with it. In addition, your jaw joint massages out when you chew, talk or swallow the earwax granules.
Cotton swab or spray
Ordinary hygiene, such as showering regularly, is enough to keep your ears clean. Avoid washing your ear cups with soap, as this can cause irritation. Only earwax that you see is allowed to carefully remove with a cotton swab. Rooting deeper into the ear is counterproductive. This stimulates the production of earwax and you push the substance further into the ear. You can also damage the skin in the ear canal, which in turn can cause inflammation.
Earwax removers are available at the drugstore in the form of drops and spray. These don’t dissolve your earwax, but liquefy it and loosen it from the skin so that it comes out more easily. A downside of these products is that they usually contain preservatives that you allergic can respond to. ENT doctors therefore advise against the use of earwax removers.
Issues
Normally, nature keeps your ear canal in balance: your ears remove as much earwax as they create. Problems only arise if you create excessive wax or if the wax builds up and blocks the ear canal. Wearing earplugs or a hearing aid stops earwax, which can create a hard plug of earwax. Dry and hard earwax, eczema, diabetes, a lot of hair in the ear canal, an abnormal shape of the ear canal and swimming are often causes of earwax problems.
Too much picking with a cotton swab, pen, hairpin, match or paper clip regularly leads to complaints. This not only damages the skin, it also pushes the wax inwards further and further, until it is so deep that the ear canal can no longer work it out on its own.
Excess, trapped earwax can cause pain, itching, ringing in the earsdizziness, impaired hearing and a blocked, full feeling in the ears. The combination of a lot of earwax and damaged skin in the ear canal can also lead to an ear canal infection.
Ear toilet and spraying
If your wax is very stiff and friable, you can occasionally drip some lettuce or olive oil into your ear to soften it up. If you have a blocked ear, you should go to the doctor. The doctor or assistant will then check whether your complaints are the result of a plug of earwax. If so, they spray lukewarm water into the ear canal. The water flows out of your ear again and immediately takes the plug with it. Sometimes a few repetitions or a parenthesis is necessary. Syringes should be painless unless the skin in the ear canal is damaged. You may feel dizzy for a while.
In a number of cases you may not have your ears syringed, for example if you have a hole in your eardrum or a runny ear. Even if you previously ear canal inflammation after having your ear ejected, you should refrain from ejection. In these cases, the GP will refer you to an ENT specialist. This will help you get rid of your clogged ear with a hook or a mini vacuum cleaner: a so-called ear toilet.
After removing the accumulated earwax, let your ear canal dry thoroughly. You should be able to hear just fine afterwards and the congested feeling will have disappeared. If the ear remains painful and the hearing worse, contact your doctor again.
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