Earwax forms naturally and has several important duties to keep your ear working fine. The first and foremost function of earwax is to lubricate your ear canals to save them from dryness, itchiness, and irritation. The other functions include preventing debris from moving further into the ear and saving ear canals from infections.
Although ear wax is important for our body and especially our ear, many people don’t like the buildup of earwax inside the ear canals. Our ears have their own ways of dealing with the wax and don’t need any such cleaning efforts from us. Most of the time, when you take a bath, the shampoo or body wash dropping from the hairs is enough for cleaning the ears. But many people aren’t satisfied with the cleaning and want more. If you are one of those, read this article to learn how to properly and safely clean your ears.
Avoid putting objects of any kind in your ears!
Whatever happens, or no matter how much cleaning you need, never put anything inside your ear canals, and it includes cotton swabs too. Putting cotton swabs without any particular reasons to get rid of extra earwax is a thing of the past. This is an old method of cleaning your ears and can push the wax further into the canal, sometimes causing serious damage.
Stop yourself from cleaning your ears with cotton swabs, keys, paper clips, or anything alike.
To properly clean your ears, do the following:
Use a warm washcloth.
If earwax is visible on the outer ear or outside edges of the ear canal, take a washcloth and damp it with warm water and very softly clean your ears. Please avoid inserting the washcloth inside the ear canals.
You can use oils to soften the wax.
If there’s a need for an extensive cleaning, put a few drops of oil into the ear canal using an eyedropper. This is one of the most effective ways to properly clean your ears. You can use mineral oil, baby oil, or glycerin to soften the earwax. Buying OTC earwax removal kits from a drugstore can also help. This kit includes an ear dropper and gentle oils.
After putting in the oil, you’ll have to wait for 24-36 hours for the wax to get soft so you can easily remove it later. After waiting:
- Pour a few drops of water into the ear canal using a rubber-bulb syringe.
- Tilt your head to let the water and softened wax flow out of the ear.
- Do the same for your other ear.
Dry your ears.
If your ears are wet due to cleaning with an earwax softening technique or damp washcloth, it’s necessary to dry your ears afterward. Simply wipe your ear with a clean cloth.
If there’s an accumulation of earwax near the eardrum, it’s not recommended to clean it yourself, or you might end up inflicting damage. Instead, head to your physician for professional ear cleaning.
For a consultation with a primary care physician in Houston, call 832-786-8195.