- Ear candles are hollow candles used for clearing wax in the ear. One end is put into the ear, and the other end is lit. The candle is left to burn for 15 to 45 minutes or until there are 2 to 4 inches of candle left.
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Users claim that the flame of the candle uses negative pressure to pull or suck wax, toxins and objects out of the the ear, sinus cavities and brain. But this is not possible, due to the fact that the ear canal does not open into the brain. Also,a study done by the The Spokane Ear, Nose, and Throat Clinic found that ear candles do not work and do not create negative pressure in the ear.
If an ear candle did create enough negative pressure to pull wax and impurities from the ear, it would likely rupture the eardrum. -
In October 2007, the Food and Drug Administration issued a statement alerting users to the dangers of ear candles. This report stated that users were in danger of severe burns and ear damage.
A 1996 survey called Ear candles: Efficacy and Safety found that some ear, nose and throat physicians had patients with burns, ear canal obstruction from candle wax, and perforated eardrums from using ear candles.
Comments
EarCandleLady said
on 12/18/2008 Not only have you failed to answer the actual question of this article: "How Does an Ear Candle Clean the Ear?",you didn't even finish your article. Our society is governed by the "scientific method". Meaning, if science CAN explain it, we accept it. If science CAN'T explain it, then we reject it. Ear Candling is an alternative therapy that neither doctors nor pharmaceuticals can make money from. It's too time consuming to do in the office, and there's no prescription drug to sell. Therefore, they reject it, and the "scientific method" has determined ear candles don't work. INCREDIBLY, the "scientific method" can't explain why the bumblebee can fly. . . yet it does! It also can't explain why hundreds of thousands of people continue to ear candle. Maybe it's like the bunblebee. . .