March 29, 2024

Earwax Removal 101: The Best (and Safest) Ways to Clear Clogged Ears – Health Essentials from Cleveland Clinic

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Trouble hearing? Or did you push that cotton swab a little too deep this time? A clogged ear from earwax buildup is at best annoying and at worst a prelude to hearing loss.

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But earwax, also known as cerumen, is not only normal, it’s necessary.

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Trouble hearing? Or did you push that cotton swab a little too deep this time? A clogged ear from earwax buildup is at best annoying and at worst a prelude to hearing loss.

Cleveland Clinic is a non-profit academic medical center. Advertising on our site helps support our mission. We do not endorse non-Cleveland Clinic products or services. Policy

But earwax, also known as cerumen, is not only normal, it’s necessary.

“People think that earwax is dirty and needs to be cleaned, but earwax has both anti-fungal and anti-bacterial properties,” says ear, nose and throat specialist Anh Nguyen-Huynh, MD. “It also protects ears from things that could hurt the eardrum, such as dust, hair or small insects.”

Factors that can affect your amount of earwax include previous ear surgery or trauma, recurrent ear infections, or wearing hearing aids or deep earplugs.

How to remove earwax safely

So how can you best handle earwax woes?

“Sometimes, trying to clean them causes more problems than it’s worth,” says Dr. Nguyen-Huynh. “Ears are like self-cleaning ovens. When the outer layer of skin in the ear canal sheds, the wax will fall out with it.”

If earwax is becoming a nuisance, Dr. Nguyen-Huynh recommends several easy ear cleaning methods:

Over-the-counter ear cleaning drops

If you have a small amount of wax, over-the-counter ear cleaners work well. Look for drops that contain hydrogen peroxide or other kinds of peroxide. The peroxide does a good job of breaking up earwax.

Here’s how to use ear cleaning drops:

  1. Lay sideways: Make sure the ear you’re cleaning faces up and add the drops as directed.
  2. Let it sit: Allow the cleaning solution to sit in your ear for around five minutes. This lets the liquid soak in and soften things up.
  3. Grab a tissue: When you sit up, the liquid should come out along with the earwax that broke loose. Have a tissue ready to catch it all.

Ear cleaning drops may not work if you have too much earwax or a condition called impacted cerumen (when there’s a firm wax plug blocking your ear canal).

“When it’s a plug, putting peroxide in your ear may make things worse because you’re softening the plug but not dissolving or removing it,” Dr. Nguyen-Huynh says. “Then the softened plug becomes like a wall of mud that can plug your ear even more.”

A bulb syringe

If ear cleaning drops don’t work, your ears might need flushing with a bulb syringe. However, there are a few caveats:

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