Removing Ear Wax With A Candle

Do Ear Wax Candles Work?

Ear candling is a technique of removing ear wax with a candle. Using ear candles to try to unclog ear wax is also known as auricular candling or coning, and it is controversial. Proponents of removing ear wax with a candle assert that there are numerous benefits: that impurities are removed from the inner ear and even the brain itself. They claim ear candles relieve sinus pressure and pain, stop tinnitus or ringing in the ear, and reduce vertigo.

There are reports that variations of ear candling have been used by Asian cultures and Native Americans for centuries, especially in the Hopi Tribe. But in 1995, the Hopi Tribal Council denounced such reports as untrue. Nonetheless, there are a number of ear candles available commercially, and the mystique has grown in the last decade.

Some doctors believe that the process is ineffective at best and dangerous at worst. Nonetheless, some people say it works well at loosening ear wax. 

Removing ear wax with a candle A candle is placed in the ear canal. The wick of the candle (at the other end, of course) is then lit allowed to burn for a short time. Theoretically, this creates a vacuum at the bottom, loosening ear wax and unclogging the ear by sucking the wax upward.

Many medical authorities, however, say the vacuum needed to pull wax from the ear canal would have to be so strong that it would probably damage or rupture the eardrum in the process. While the process certainly has adherents, some doctors call it "hocus pocus." One research team reported that it could not detect any vacuum at all when it tested ear candling, and in fact, the candle deposited more debris in the ear than it removed.

Doctors also warn that hot candle wax can accidentally burn the external ear and the skin around it. If any wax gets into the ear canal itself, it can damage anything it touches and be especially difficult to remove if it cools.

Someone who becomes inattentive might even set their hair or clothing on fire.

Whether or not to use an ear candle for loosening ear wax, is, of course, a personal decision. But consumers should thoroughly investigate any claims by any company before making a purchase. Click here to see an article about a recent FDA statement on ear candling.

Ear candles that are offered commercially usually cost between $2.00 and $10.00.