Ear Wax: Removal And Causes

Ear wax removal. It’s an icky, albeit necessary part of many a beauty routine. But are you cleaning your ears correctly?

Although excess ear wax can cause hearing difficulties and discomfort, removing it incorrectly can cause damage to sensitive parts of the ear.

RELATED: Ear candling: What is it?

Here’s how to remove that pesky ear wax safely and effectively (without resorting to any dangerous or ill-advised methods)...

Ear wax 101

Before you go to town on your ear wax, it’s important to understand what ear wax is, and why it is there in the first place. Also known as cerumen, it is secreted in the ear canal. It ranges in colour from yellowish to reddish brown and, despite being rather sinister-looking, research shows that it protects the skin of your ear canal, and against bacteria, fungi, insects (gross, I know) and water entering the deeper part of the ear.

Ear wax is primarily (about 60 per cent) comprised of shed skin cells, as well as hair, and the secretions of the ceruminous and sebaceous glands of the outside ear canal. Ear wax is a normal secretion and, as betterhealth.vic.gov.au explains, “Actions of the jaw, such as talking and chewing, help to move the wax out of the canal.” In other words, ear wax “is constantly travelling towards the outer ear where it can come out.” Occasionally, however, a build-up of earwax can occur. This excess or compacted ear wax can press against the eardrum and/or block the outside ear canal, causing hearing difficulties, tinnitus, itching, vertigo or pain.

RELATED: Tips for relieving dry eyes

How to remove ear wax

Cleaning out excess ear wax from the ear canal is a delicate exercise. The idea is not to eliminate the wax entirely, but simply to keep it from blocking your ear. While cotton buds such as Swisspers Cotton Tips or BEAUTY ESSENTIALS Cotton Tips 100 pack ($1.99, priceline.com.au) were initially invented to help remove ear wax, studies have shown that this method often removes only a small portion of the top layer of wax, pushing the rest further into the ear canal. In some cases, the cotton head may cause damage to the ear canal, or even fall off and become lodged in the ear canal. Therefore, cotton tips should be used only to clean the external ear.

Experts generally agree that more invasive removal methods (including those that involve suction, irrigation with a syringe or small forceps or spoons) should only be carried out by a general practitioner or ear specialist, or individuals who have been sufficiently trained in the procedure.

Ear wax removal methods

For gentler, at-home ear wax removal, health professionals recommend using ear cleaning drops, which will help soften the hard wax plug naturally and allow it to come easily out of the ear. Ear cleaning drops can be purchased from most leading chemists and pharmacies.

EAR CLEAR Wax Removal (Ear Drops) ($12.30, priceline.com.au)
Audiclean Ear Wax Remover ($8.99, chemistwarehouse.com.au)
Audiclean Ear Wash 60ml & Ear Wax Remover 12ml Pack ($18.99, chemistwarehouse.com.au)

Please note that this method should not be used if you have (or suspect you could have) a perforated ear drum.

What not to do

Experts warn that ramming small objects, buds or syringes into your ear repetitively can damage the fragile tissue of your ear, or even perforate the eardrum. Abrasion of the ear canal, particularly after water has entered from swimming or bathing, can also lead to an ear infection.

While ear syringes such as Surgipack 6314 Ear Syringe ($7.39, chemistwarehouse.com.au) are available over the counter, most experts agree this method is best left to a general practitioner or ear specialist (unless you have been specifically trained in the procedure by said expert).

Finally, it is also important not to over-clean your ears, as this can cause inflammation and irritation. To remove a small to moderate amount of wax, experts recommend cleaning your ears just once a week.

Do you use ear wash and/or ear wax remover products? Did you find this article helpful?

54 Member Comments

Austin 9 Sep 2020 3:27 AM

Here is a easy and cheap way to get ear wax removed

https://www.ear-cleaning.com/

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Jay.dogga1986 25 Jun 2020 11:54 AM

I use cotton buds but i'm super careful and never put them straight into my ear

BeautifulJusty 3 Jun 2017 9:18 AM

I use cotton tips gently

Sootyhere 18 Jun 2018 2:14 PM

As long as you are careful and gentle it should be okay

Peta908 29 Mar 2017 4:06 PM

I hate seeing wax in ears (is there a phobia????)

jlsta 24 Feb 2017 2:50 PM

I will try the products for sure now. I usually only clean gently with a cotton bud.

shaper 8 Feb 2017 10:22 AM

a few years ago I went to my doctor asking to have my ears washed out and after he had it done by the nurse he checked again and found I was still not hearing right, so sent me off to a specialist , after a few more test and a hearing test it was found that I had a condition in one ear and I was going deaf...fantastic. I had the option of having an operation but no guarantees and if it did not work I would be profoundly deaf in that ear. I declined the operation and now have to wear a small hearing aid and it has nothing to do with age....I wear my hair around my ears and you cannot see the hearing aid. But what a shock so Please everyone do not put anything in your ear at all, EVER!!!

Marza 7 Feb 2017 6:10 PM

Those cotton buds can cause a lot of damage

perthchick 1 Jun 2018 5:38 PM

They sure can.

wandus 7 Feb 2017 11:47 AM

Cotton buds! How not to use them. It was a great invention and a fantastic idea. Meedee gave me hope...I'm not alone in using them. Once in my lifetime of over 50 years I had to have my ears cleaned professionally because I woke up with a hearing problem. Lots of wax was flushed out and it was a gross procedure but painless.

Meedee 4 Feb 2017 7:49 AM

Ive always used cotton buds but not to ram them into my ear....just to clean the opening. Ive spoken to my Doc about this and he doesnt seem concerned so i figure its ok.

Dazza the wombat 3 Feb 2017 4:39 PM

My husband over produces wax in his right ear, causing total deafness in that ear. He gets it syringed once a year by our doc. Once I assisted by holding the dish to catch the excess water & I saw the huge lumps of wax come out & I said, "That's disgusting!" Our doc responds, "Well, that's your husband."

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Jessica712 3 Feb 2017 9:43 AM

I use cotton buds if needed, but I am very careful and gentle with them.

Gilliey 3 Feb 2017 8:40 AM

I've had ear syringing done by the doctor and have used earclear and I've also been guilty of using cotton buds. With having had issues with blocked ears due to sinus I knew most of the facts. Always good to have these things brought to our attention, thankyou Beautyheaven.

Kassalee 3 Feb 2017 7:32 AM

Great Article!

I recall as a child my GP always saying

"never put anything smaller than your elbow in your ear!"

That was some 50 years ago and rings true today. I have very narrow ear canals (inherited from my Dad and now passed on to my daughter) and have issues with the wax making it's way out and would need to get my ears syringed out which often resulted in ear infections after. Seems I'm unable to get water in my ears as it gets trapped so I always need to wear ear plugs (blu-tak works best!) for everything from swimming to washing my hair.

After seeing an ear specialist (after a nasty ear infection) he used the method of suctioning as mentioned in this article. Using a microscope and needing to select one of his smallest bits to insert in my ear canal (child size!) they suction out the wax - weird noises!

This is necssary only every 1 to. 2 years and I've been lucky to discover a bulk billing GP who has this equipment and costs nothing !

The procedure (as per Medicare) is called - wait for it ....

EAR TOILET. !!!

Yohanna 3 Mar 2017 6:37 PM

HAHAHAHAH....thank you for sharing KAssalee! Love the name of the 'procedure' hahahhaahah

Trish_D 2 Feb 2017 11:46 PM

Some people have a far greater problem than others. If it affects hearing then see your doctor. So important to be careful and not make the issue worse.

MelissaFay89 2 Feb 2017 7:53 PM

Im not fancy, cotton buds work fine for me but I am very careful

the_girl_who_loves_cosmetics 2 Feb 2017 7:11 PM

I learnt some interesting things by reading this article. It is always great to be given information on topics that you don't generally hear or talk about often, like ear care.

cityglenda 2 Feb 2017 7:09 PM

Someone forgot to tell Kevin Rudd. Do you remember how he picked the wax out of his ear in Parliament and ate it? Eww!

Sootyhere 18 Jun 2018 2:15 PM

Ew all right

Ellyloves 2 Feb 2017 5:46 PM

I always tell my hubby that he shouldn't be pushing the cotton bud into his ear! Never listens...

Kassalee 3 Feb 2017 7:34 AM

Ellyloves, are we married to the same person? They won't listen to us!

bebeautiful34 2 Feb 2017 3:29 PM

I like getting my ears cleaned out once in a awhile, I feel so clean and feel like I can hear better!

thelifeoflaura 2 Feb 2017 2:13 PM

I always forget to do this! I really need to try and do this more often!

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