ear candles

[Mauser]

Has anyone tried ear candles for swimmers ear? I know some people that make them. (Mods I am not trying to pimp there product so I whon't even put up there link) But I was wondering if anyone has tried them to realive swimmers ear.

 

[justleesa]

I know someone that has tried them...can't really say it worked.

 

[JessH]

I have heard bad things about them. Basically the wax of the candle melts and people think that this is ear wax being sucked out. Tests have shown that they don't actually remove any wax, and they have the ability to seriously injure you if hot wax gets on your ear drum.

What you want for swimers ear is ear beer. Do a search on here and you should find some recipies. Or you can buy the dropper bottle of swimers ear at most pharmacies.

~Jess

 

[AXL72]

yeah, Jess is right about damage to the ear. A TV news show did a story on earcandling and said the same thing about the negative impacts of candling.

 

[JessH]

Well the TV News agrees with me. It must be true!

btw, whats the story with your avatar? Looks like the guy that married one of my high school friends (as in he did the service, not the guy she married)

~Jess

 

[Wildcard]

I did my own test and found them to be bunk. Burn one in your ear and one free standing and the same crap is left behind, melted bees wax.

 

[DocVikingo]

Hi Mauser,

Neither effective nor recommended for any purpose regarding the ear.

To address the issue of "swimmer's ear" in a safe and effective fashion, I suggest that one read the article on that topic in the current edition of DAN's Alert Diver magazine.

Regards,

DocVikingo

 

[Blind]

What is peoples fascination with trying to get wax out of there ears? It is there for a reason ya know and as long as you leave it alone (dont stick stuff in your ears, ever!) its handles itself… mostly.

Diluted IPA(propan-2-ol) is good for ear aches. But id recomend seeing your doctor rather than taking advice off msgboards

 

[NJMike]

Very interesting...worth more investigation. I've used them twice and was able to notice marked improvement afterwards. I decided to make it one of my pre dive season "things to do".

Always heard good things about them, this is the only place that bashed them.

If what JessH said above, wouldn't that be easy to prove?...just burn the candle without it being in your ear and see if there's any wax? Since my dive season begins in 2 weeks, guess I'll be doing it soon and will also try it without being in the ear.

 

[DocVikingo]

Why Ear Candling Is Not a Good Idea
http://www.quackwatch.org/01QuackeryRelatedTopics/candling.html