3 ms·

When a friend was in med school, she was told by an ear doctor that a Q-tip removes only material that would have fallen out naturally, while at the same time p

When a friend was in med school, she was told by an ear doctor that a Q-tip removes only material that would have fallen out naturally, while at the same time pushing everything else in further. The doctor also said that Q-tips are what keep them in business.

rhino369 11y ago
When I first heard that I wasn't supposed to use qtips my ears I stopped. Couple months later the wax built up and sealed my ears so I couldn't hear. I thought I went deaf over night. I had to have a doctor pull out a gross amount of ear wax. They must be doing something for me. I went back to them and it never happened again. Could be a coincidence I guess.
- cmurf 11y ago
  Vegetable oil +cotton for 30 minutes, then irrigate with a waterpik on low. But really if it's cleaned out and you never stick anything in your ear, it'll clean itself out.
  - newday 11y ago
    I wouldn't recommend an oil that dried or goes rancid, this is an opportunity to create a substrate for bacteria. Mineral oil would seem like a better choice, and since it doesn't dry, you won't accidentally make the situation worse.
- frogpelt 11y ago
  I've heard that cleaning your ears causes more wax to be produced. Maybe this is why your ears ended up chock full.
  - pc2g4d 11y ago
    I could definitely believe that. Something along the lines of "using chapstick makes your lips produce less moisture, thus making the chapstick seem more necessary". Our bodies like their equilibria and will adjust to preserve them when interfered with.
- colanderman 11y ago
  Ditto. I once was without Q-tips for two weeks by which point I could no longer hear. Some people like myself have very wet ear wax which does not simply "fall out". Q-tips solve this simply. Just be careful with them (you only need to go in a little and twist) and you'll be fine.
- wallacoloo 11y ago
  I seem to have inherited my small ear canals from my father, and once every year or two my ears get clogged to where everything sounds muffled. I use what's called an "ear syringe" or an "ear douche" to clean my ears: http://img.hisupplier.com/var/userImages/2010-07/26/tenhoo_170852944_s.jpg http://img.hisupplier.com/var/userImages/2010-07/26/tenhoo_1... I'm very much curious on how these compare to Q-tips, etc, in terms of safety, though they are at least marketed towards the use I put them to. I generally fill a sink with warm water, tilt my head to the side and repeatedly douch my ears. It takes a solid 10~15 minutes, but eventually the warm water helps separate the wax and a few large chuncks will wash out and I can hear again. Plus, "I douched my ears last night" is a pretty decent conversation starter for whenever somebody asks what you've been up to lately.
- epimetheus 11y ago
  I must be crazy lucky. I've not used qtips or any sort of earwax stuff since maybe highschool or earlier(I'm 38) - in fact, I'm not sure I even remember when I last did them, but it was around that time. I've never had earwax build up to those levels, thankfully. I guess, I occasionally stick my fingers lightly in my ear so maybe that acts as some sort of minor cleaning (I never have pulled anything out) Lately though, my hair has started growing in my ears, and I have a shaver to trim them down. That's weird, I guess I'm getting old man ears now. Hopefully earwax doesn't start as well.

rhino369 11y ago

When I first heard that I wasn't supposed to use qtips my ears I stopped. Couple months later the wax built up and sealed my ears so I couldn't hear. I thought I went deaf over night. I had to have a doctor pull out a gross amount of ear wax. They must be doing something for me. I went back to them and it never happened again. Could be a coincidence I guess.

cmurf 11y ago
Vegetable oil +cotton for 30 minutes, then irrigate with a waterpik on low. But really if it's cleaned out and you never stick anything in your ear, it'll clean itself out.
- newday 11y ago
  I wouldn't recommend an oil that dried or goes rancid, this is an opportunity to create a substrate for bacteria. Mineral oil would seem like a better choice, and since it doesn't dry, you won't accidentally make the situation worse.
frogpelt 11y ago
I've heard that cleaning your ears causes more wax to be produced. Maybe this is why your ears ended up chock full.
- pc2g4d 11y ago
  I could definitely believe that. Something along the lines of "using chapstick makes your lips produce less moisture, thus making the chapstick seem more necessary". Our bodies like their equilibria and will adjust to preserve them when interfered with.
colanderman 11y ago
Ditto. I once was without Q-tips for two weeks by which point I could no longer hear. Some people like myself have very wet ear wax which does not simply "fall out". Q-tips solve this simply. Just be careful with them (you only need to go in a little and twist) and you'll be fine.
wallacoloo 11y ago
I seem to have inherited my small ear canals from my father, and once every year or two my ears get clogged to where everything sounds muffled. I use what's called an "ear syringe" or an "ear douche" to clean my ears: http://img.hisupplier.com/var/userImages/2010-07/26/tenhoo_170852944_s.jpg http://img.hisupplier.com/var/userImages/2010-07/26/tenhoo_1... I'm very much curious on how these compare to Q-tips, etc, in terms of safety, though they are at least marketed towards the use I put them to. I generally fill a sink with warm water, tilt my head to the side and repeatedly douch my ears. It takes a solid 10~15 minutes, but eventually the warm water helps separate the wax and a few large chuncks will wash out and I can hear again. Plus, "I douched my ears last night" is a pretty decent conversation starter for whenever somebody asks what you've been up to lately.
epimetheus 11y ago
I must be crazy lucky. I've not used qtips or any sort of earwax stuff since maybe highschool or earlier(I'm 38) - in fact, I'm not sure I even remember when I last did them, but it was around that time. I've never had earwax build up to those levels, thankfully. I guess, I occasionally stick my fingers lightly in my ear so maybe that acts as some sort of minor cleaning (I never have pulled anything out) Lately though, my hair has started growing in my ears, and I have a shaver to trim them down. That's weird, I guess I'm getting old man ears now. Hopefully earwax doesn't start as well.