Home Earwax Removal

When possible, seek medical attention before using at-home remedies for earwax removal.

Old wives' tales warn that you should never place anything smaller than your elbow in your ear opening. While this saying means that you should not place anything in your ears, you can safely use at home products to remove ear wax from your ears.

Purpose

The gooey rust-colored substance that fills our ears serves the purpose of trapping dirt, hair and debris from entering the ear canal. However, ear wax often makes our ears itch or hurt and even hardens in the ear canal, causing more severe problems. If you cannot afford medical care to have the wax removed, you can try some safe at-home remedies.

Misconceptions

Do not insert cotton swabs past the ear canal opening.

Many people falsely believe that you should not stick cotton swabs into your ears with the intention of cleaning out wax. Cotton swabs affixed to paper or plastic rods provide a way to clean the ears without seeking medical assistance. Cotton swabs may damage the eardrum if allowed to penetrate too deep but allow you to safely clean the opening of the ear canal.

Treatment Options

In addition to cotton swabs, you may also place drops of peroxide in the ear canals. The peroxide reacts to protein and fizzes inside your ear as it dissolves the earwax. If you can purchase a syringe and small rubber catheter, you can irrigate your ears just as they would do at the doctor's office, by injecting a stream of warm water into the ears to flush out the ear canals--and the wax inside them.

References

• The Medical Consumer's Advocate: The Ear Wax FAQ
• Healthline: Ear Irrigation

Resources

• American Academy of Otolaryngology: Earwax