Exploring What Ear Candling Entails

Ear candling has been a trend to remove ear wax and the results have been astonishing! You can’t help but watch in awe as people try out this trend in hopes of cleaning out their ears.

The process of ear candling uses a fabric that is rolled into a cone, inserted in the ear, and burned to remove ear wax and dirt from the ears. These candles are a mere ten inches long, which you’re supposed to burn for at least ten minutes.

To prevent you from burning, you can create a makeshift ashtray out of foil or plastic. Many people have tried coning. Is it really possible for all that gunk to come out of your ear?

Benefits

Ear candling promises to remove wax and impurities from your ears by creating a vacuum by burning the cone. Other claims include helping with headaches, sinus infections, colds, and flu, aiding hearing loss, and even a sore throat!

Does It Work?

We all aren’t a fan of ear wax, and it can be tempting to clean it out or feel like it’s too much. When you’ve been medically advised not to use earbuds, ear candling might seem like an easy out, but does it actually work?

Studies say no! Research has been done and shown that candling does not create a vacuum. In fact, all the gunk collected at the bottom tested as candle wax, not ear wax!

The study also showed that the candle could even deposit wax into your ear. Companies that claim that burning the candle draws out wax or impurities don’t have substantial evidence to prove that it works.

Safety Concerns

Because ear candling involves a fire, there is a safety concern, and if you do use it, you could be at risk for injury. If you’re not careful, you can sustain injuries from the open fire if the pieces fall onto your face or body, not to mention that it’s a fire risk inside your house!

You can damage your eardrum and hurt your ear from the wax that is deposited into your ear. The wax can also plug your ear and result in hearing problems.

Deposited wax has to be removed by a medical professional because your body is not equipped to remove solid pieces of wax. No matter how strict you are at following the instructions, any of these possible safety concerns can happen!

Cleaning Your Ears

You should have your ears cleaned by your doctor if you have a large build-up of wax and it isn’t pushed out naturally by your body. Avoid using earbuds as they can easily injure your eardrum.

Earbuds are also not safe because they push the wax against your eardrum, which can affect your hearing. You can also try eardrops and irrigation to remove wax.

Be careful when trying any procedure to clean your ears; it’s best to trust that your body will clean itself when necessary. Don’t use ear candling as a method for wax removal, as it can lead to serious injury!