For the first time in countless nights of taking showers throughout the years, I didn’t reach for the cotton swab box. That’s right—I didn’t clean my ears. Shudder in disgust if you want, but I’ve been reading about the dangers and it’s enough to make me break the habit. Warnings about cotton swab are nothing new, but I used to shrug it off because the idea of wax growing in my ears was too unappealing to ignore. But it turns out that, despite its icky appearance and feeling, earwax is something we want and need. In fact, using cotton swabs not only makes our ears less clean—it also puts us at risk for infection and even deafness.
Waxing Poetic About Cerumen
First, let’s tackle a common misconception about earwax, the yellow or brown stuff found on the end of cotton swabs (or whatever you use to clean your ears). It isn’t the result of bacteria and debris building up in our ear canals, as many falsely believe. Earwax, more scientifically known as cerumen, is actually produced in the ear, thanks to glands lining the skin in the outer canal.
What we think of as gross is a defense mechanism—the sticky substance protects sensitive skin within the canal from invading dirt, dead skin, and other things that could cause problems. They get stuck on the wax instead of burrowing further into the ear. The ingredients in cerumen, such as saturated fatty acids, and its acidity also make it a powerful opponent against bacteria. Waxy layers keep the skin lubricated as well, which prevents dry spots and reduces itchiness.
Even if we embrace earwax as a beneficial resident in our bodies, what happens when it builds up? That’s another little-known fact about ears—they actually clean themselves when functioning properly. Earwax and other debris naturally make their way toward the outer part of the ear, a process aided whenever we move our jaws to talk or chew. Once it reaches the visible portion, it’s safe to remove with a washcloth. Healthy ears efficiently remove excess materials and maintain a protective cerumen layer inside. So even though wax has become synonymous with dirtiness, the exact opposite is true. Without it, our ears would be much less clean.
Don’t Get Empty Between the Ears
It’s important to understand why earwax is a good presence in ours lives, but it’s even more important to realize just how much damage we can inflict by trying to get rid of it. Wax is only produced in the outer one-third of the canal, so it shouldn’t go anywhere near the ultra-sensitive eardrum—unless we stick something in our ears that pushes it in the wrong direction, that is. Poking around our ear canals with cotton swabs moves wax where it shouldn’t be, and since there’s no pressure going the opposite way that far into the canal, it stays put and builds up. The build up can lead to infection and possible hearing loss; if wax accumulates against the ear drum, tinnitus—a terrible buzzing in one’s ear—can also occur.
