Ear Candle Wax Removal – Holistic Cure or Complete Quackery?

        Can inserting a fiery wax cone into your ear canal increase health and general well-being?  Ear candling, ear coning, auricular candles, or thermal auricular therapy, has been around since ancient times.  I personally did not hear of this until I was taught how to perform this service in school.  Ear candling is not something that we practiced at home growing up.  We just shoved Q-tips so far into our ear canals, we probably stabbed our brains!  Ear candling is one of those ancient healing remedies that modern Western medicine has completely denounced, and yet civilizations all over the world still practice today.  No one seems to agree on the actual origin of ear candling, there is evidence of the practice existing in ancient China, Egypt, Native America, and Tibet.

        Ear candling is an alternative medicine practice from ancient times where a cone or funnel shaped “ear candle” is inserted into the ear canal.  The “candle” is made from tightly wound gauze that has been dipped in beeswax, paraffin or soy wax.  The opposite, larger end is lit, and as the candle burns, it is theoretically pulling debris, ear wax, and toxins out of the ear through some sort of suction-pressure-condensation effect.  When the service has been completed, the practitioner cuts the stump of the candle open and you can see all the ear wax that has been pulled from the ear.  Proponents of ear candling claim that it is beneficial for earwax build up, earaches, swimmer’s ear, tinnitus, hearing problems, and sinus infections.  It is also claimed that pulling the congestion out of ears and sinuses can help to alleviate symptoms of the cold, flu and sore throat.  Regulating and balancing your equilibrium can help with vertigo and dizziness.  Other claims are reduced stress and tension in the body, and the removal of toxins.

        Western medicine condemns the use of ear candles as not only completely ineffective at curing any of these ailments, but as extremely dangerous and can cause more harm than good.  Many anti-ear candling practitioners site cases of burns to the face and body, perforated ear drums, ear canal blockages from candle wax falling into ears, and so on. 

        These all sound like cases where the service was performed incorrectly.  This is definitely something that you need to go to an actual professional at a wellness clinic to have performed on you.  Anytime fire is involved, you can get hurt.  This is far too risky to try on yourself at home.  You must trim the ash of the candle down as it burns to prevent it from falling on your head!  Better left with the professionals. 

        After I have had the service, my ears feel clean, my head does not feel congested or full of pressure, and I do have a better sense of balance.  Modern medicine would say that those feelings are implied or psychosomatic, but how do they explain all of the debris that was collected inside of the candle?  My doctor told me it was probably the melted wax and soot from the candle.   All I know is that it relieved my sinus infection and that I could actually feel it working as the candle was burning, because my ears were popping, pressure was releasing, and I could feel my sinuses draining. 

        When done properly in a clinical setting by a trained professional, I have found my individual results to be positive.  As with anything, there are risks involved.  Those contraindicated for ear candling include those who have current infection or inflammation of the ear, perforation of the ear drum, those who have had Tympanostomy (grommets), drains or tubes fitted in the ear.

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