Doctors warn of ear candles – salzburg.ORF.at
health
Some use ear candles to relieve stress, others use them to clean their ears. Many specialists are not happy with this. These wax sticks are inserted into the ear and lit.
Serious burns in the ear happen again and again. In the worst case, there will be irreparable commercial damage to the eardrum, ENT doctors warn. Beatrice Rosenhammer from Salzburg relied on the warmth of ear candles for ear pain. That turned out to be a mistake: “A friend then lit it on me. You lie on your side and the candle is put vertically in your ear. The ear candle then burned down fairly quickly. That was not the case with the first candle. I got a drop of wax on my eardrum.”
An ear candle burns intensely quickly. It’s easy for wax to drip into your ear. The specialist group chairman of the ENT doctors in Salzburg, Georg Sinzinger, warns: “Ear candles are not only ineffective, but can also be dangerous”.
Chopsticks have been around for centuries
Nevertheless, the chopsticks that come from alternative medicine stubbornly persist in the market, although ENT doctors have been warning against their use for centuries. Use and wax residue can cause irreparable damage. Nevertheless, the ear candles are still sold in pharmacies. Pharmacists recommend careful handling, says pharmacist Maria Kanitz from Puch (Tennengau): “If someone asks about it, we will advise them. We point out the danger that the method poses. You should use a drip guard and not do the application alone, but better with a therapist”.
Specialist group chairman Sinzinger emphasizes that you shouldn’t put anything in your ear except your little finger or a handkerchief or cotton swab. If you have an earache, you should see a doctor.
If you don’t want to do without the soothing warmth in your ears, you should use red light lamps or cherry stone pillows, advises the doctor.
Doctors warn against ear candling
The wax sticks have been on the market for centuries, but doctors said they were ineffective and dangerous