Some of you who may happen by this site from time to time may have heard of a process called ear candling. There are a lot of different people out there who may say it is possible for ear candling to be used to treat tinnitus, but according to this recent article by Dr. Susan Mathison from Inforum.com, it is a very bad idea. Let’s take a look at a little bit of the column that she wrote and see what this is all about.
For those of you who are unfamiliar with ear candles or ear cones, they are made of fabric soaked in wax and shaped to form a hollow tube. In theory, the combination of heat and suction is supposed to remove ear wax.
Technically marketed “for entertainment or recreational use,” ear candles have been touted to relieve sinus pain, cure ear infections, help relieve tinnitus and vertigo, and even strengthen the brain.
(emphasis mine, not Dr. Mathison’s)
So, from a real live medical doctor, it’s not a great idea. The good Dr Mathison actually started the article nothing that she had seen a young patient who had burned her ear trying to use one of these ear candles to help remove wax and presumably to get some significant benefit for their ears.
The real question, is how can an ear candle, which was described in the article as being a device for “entertainment or recreational use” all of a sudden become a cure-all for ear problems, tinnitus, or what may be thought of as a weak brain. Otherwise, why even both er to strengthen the brain, right?
What can be done to relieve tinnitus? The standbys that we talk about on this blog are a good start. Which of course, starts with speaking to your doctor and making sure that you’re clear of any health complications that could be far worse than ringing in your ears, no matter how bad. Of course, from there it’s up to you. Find a full program like Tinnitus Miracle, or you can go your own way with different methods for meditation, neuromonics, tinnitus retraining therapy, or a combination of these depending on what you and your doctor think is best.
And one final note on the possibility of ear wax being a source of tinnitus problems: If you go to the doctor and he or she sees a build up of earwax, brave the potential discomfort and have them go ahead and clear it for you. Tinnitus treatment by way of ear candling for any sort of problem sounds like a bad idea.
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