Doctors aren’t just saying ‘cotton buds probably aren’t the best for you’, they’re saying we should stop using them ‘IMMEDIATELY’
Picking up a cotton bud and digging around in your ear is a daily habit for a lot of people.
It could be for many reasons, it feels nice, it tickles… No? Just to clean out ear wax? Oh yeah me too…
Doctors have revealed they are seeing thousands of children with serious ear injuries after trying to clean out their own ears with cotton buds.
We’re all under the assumption the cotton bud was invented to clean our ear.
Turns out, it’s doing the exact opposite.
Using a cotton bud is preventing the ear from cleaning itself – that’s possible?!? I really should have listened in biology.
Richard Harvey, professor of rhinology at the University of New South Wales and Macquarie University has a great reminder:
“A good rule of thumb for most people is that they shouldn’t put anything smaller than their elbow in their ear.
“The problem is that this effort to eliminate earwax is only creating further issues because the earwax is just getting pushed down and impacted further into the ear canal.”
Okay, question, how do we get the wax out?
Ear and hearing specialist Brande Plotnick spoke to healthyhearing.com and revealed the ear doesn’t actually need to be cleaned:
“During hair washing or showers, enough water enters the ear canal to loosen the wax that has accumulated… the skin in your ear canal naturally grows in an outward, spiral pattern.
“Most of the time the wax will loosen and fall out on its own while you are asleep.
“The need for a cotton swab isn’t necessary.”
Mind blown.
If you’re that desperate for the feel of relief, head to your local doctor where they can expertly remove any wax build up.
Best to use cotton buds for their other, safer purposes, such as removing make-up or arts and crafts.
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Written by Christina Caverli
Image: HBO
