What You Should Know About Earwax Buildup

Don’t forget to wash your ears. Whenever you say that, you unavoidably use your “parent voice”. Maybe when you were a child you even recall your parents telling you to do it. That’s the sort of memory that can remind you of simpler times as you wrap yourself in the nostalgia of youth.

But that advice can be rather helpful. Your hearing can be significantly affected by an overabundance of earwax. Even worse, this organic substance can solidify in place making it difficult to clean out. Bottom line, you’ll be best off keeping those ears clean.

Excessive earwax? Eww!

Earwax is, well, kind of gross. That’s a viewpoint that most individuals share. But it is actually important for your ear’s health. Created by specialized glands in your ear and churned outwards by the chewing motions of your jaw, earwax can help keep dirt and dust out of your ears.

In other words, the ideal amount of earwax can help keep your ears clean and healthy. It may seem peculiar, but earwax doesn’t suggest poor hygiene.

Too much earwax is where the problem starts. And, understandably, it can sometimes be a bit challenging to tell when a healthy amount of earwax begins to outweigh its usefulness (literally).

What does accumulated earwax do?

So, what type of impact does excess earwax present? Earwax that gets out of hand and, over time, accumulates, can cause a number of issues. Here are a few:

• Infection: Excessive earwax can lead to ear infections. Sometimes, that’s because the earwax can trap fluid where it ought not to be.
• Dizziness: Your inner ear is essential to your balance. So when excess ear wax causes your inner ear to have issues, your balance can be affected, causing you to feel dizzy.
• Earache: An earache is one of the most prevalent indications of excess earwax. Sometimes, it doesn’t hurt that bad, and other times it can hurt a lot. This is usually a result of the earwax producing pressure someplace it shouldn’t.
• Tinnitus: Tinnitus is a condition where you hear a phantom buzzing or ringing in your ears. Tinnitus symptoms can show up or get worse when earwax accumulates inside your ear.

These are only a few. Neglected earwax can trigger painful headaches. Excessive earwax can hinder the functionality of hearing aids. So too much earwax may make you think your hearing aids are malfunctioning.

Can your hearing be impacted by earwax?

Well, yes it can. Hearing loss is one of the most common problems linked to excess earwax. Normally producing a form of conductive hearing loss, earwax builds up in the ear canal, preventing sound waves and vibrations from getting in. The problem usually clears up when the earwax is eliminated, and usually, your hearing will return to normal.

But if the buildup becomes extreme, long term damage can appear. And tinnitus is also typically temporary but when earwax blockage lingers, permanent damage can cause tinnitus to become a lasting condition.

Prevention, treatment, or both?

It’s a good idea to keep an eye on your earwax if you want to protect your hearing. It’s improper cleaning, not excess production that leads to buildup in most situations (for instance, blockage is frequently caused by cotton swabs, which tend to push the earwax further in rather than removing it).

It will usually call for professional eradication of the wax that has become solidified to the point that you can’t remove it. The sooner you receive that treatment, the sooner you’ll be capable of hearing again (and the sooner you’ll be able to start cleaning your ears the correct way).