Ear candles have no benefit in the management of earwax and can cause serious injury to delicate structures inside the ear. When an ear candle is lit, smoke billows from the bottom of the candle and deposits soot into the ear canal, adding to the amount of debris already present inside the ear. Dripping, hot candle wax can easily cause pain by burning ear canal skin and the ear drum, if hot wax covers the eardrum it can cause hearing loss and can even burn a hole through the eardrum.
Ear candling also has no effect on conditions of the middle or inner ear. In a normal ear, the eardrum separates the ear canal from these other areas, so it is physically impossible for the candle to treat conditions like glue ear, sinusitis, vertigo, tinnitus or hearing loss. If you have a hole in your eardrum and hot candle wax drips through it to the middle ear you will require surgery to remove it.
Managing earwax at home during Covid-19
At present, if you have earwax but are not currently experiencing any issues it is best to leave the wax alone as any softening agents will be absorbed by the wax and potentially cause blockages. It is also important to keep your ears dry when showering or bathing as water in the ear canal can have the same effect as wax softeners.
If you are experiencing symptoms of earwax build-up, we recommend using Earol.
Earol is a sterile olive oil spray used to soften and loosen earwax, the nozzle applicator makes it easy to use and disperses the oil into the ear canal in a fine mist, allowing it to coat and soften the wax with less likelihood of it blocking the ear compared to olive oil inserted via a dropper.
In some cases, depending on the amount and consistency of the wax, Earol will help to soften and loosen the wax but it will still require professional removal.
If you would like to enquire about wax removal please complete the contact us form on our site and we will be in touch as soon as we are able to offer routine appointments.