Ear Candling, Not Even Once!

I have waxy ears, should I use ear candles to take care of it? 

Here are my Cliff's Note's:  No.

Why not?  Here is why…  Where do I begin?  For starters, the idea is that a cone is placed in the ear canal and then lit on fire to burn slowly.  This slow burn will apparently create a suction to pull wax out of the ear canal.  The problem with this is that you cannot create a suction strong enough to pull anything out.  Additionally, the cone is lined with bee's wax or paraffin and this is melted by the heat.  In fact the "ear wax" that is often shown as a result of the process is just melted wax from the cone.  If you are sitting or laying down on your side, you risk starting a fire, lighting your hair on fire, burning your face, ear canal, ear drum and middle ear!  The hot wax can burn a hole through your ear drum.  Not a pleasant thought… 

Here is a video put out by the FDA:  https://youtu.be/9ZwkZUrtJmg

Beyond all of the risks, there is really no way to tell what a person has in the ears without looking inside with the proper tools.  This is something only a licensed professional such an an Audiologist or Physician is educated to handle.  Without knowing what is inside you run the risk of pushing things down your ear canal.  A patient I saw recently, complained of ear pain after having her ears candled.  When I looked inside, there was burned candle wax in the canal!  I managed to remove the majority which in turn caused relief.  Thankfully there were no perforations of the ear drum caused by the earlier "treatment". 

When your ears bother you, or if you feel you have an object in your ear that needs attention, please contact an Audiologist or your Physician.  Do not take chances with your health.

Your friend in Audiology,

Dr. Erik Breitling

Audiologist