Ear Candles????

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Has anyone used Ear Candles? Do they work? I notice all the makers have a disclaimer saying they do not gurantee that they remove old ear wax.

I must admit the first time I heard of Ear Candles the first thing that poped into mind was that someone was making candles from ear wax (Yuck).

-- Mark in N.C. Fla. (deadgoatman@webtv.net), January 20, 2002

Answers

have used them,, some swear by them,,others dont,,I dont either, ,its "supposed" to create a vaccum in the ear,, and pull the earwax out. NOPE

-- Stan (sopal@net-port.com), January 20, 2002.

Stan, that's why the disclaimer. If you have your ears candled by someone who knows what they're doing, it can work wonders. I've only had mine done once, under less than ideal conditions. One ear worked, the other didn't. Would I have it done again - yes. But I never seem to have the time to stay put in one place long enough to have it done. In our small town we have a lady that does reflexology (the things she can tell from your feet!) ear candling, and full body aromatherapy massage. What a treat to go visit 'Sole Therapy'.

-- Bernie from Northern Ontario (Bernadette_kerr@hotmail.com), January 20, 2002.

So what ARE ear candles and how do you "candle" an ear????

-- Karen (mountains_mama2@hotmail.com), January 20, 2002.

Ear candles are usually made of fabric (sometimes cheesecloth) that is rolled into a long hollow tube, more pointed at one end than the other. It is then dipped in beeswax. (No, not the wax from bees ears either you guys.) The person with the ears lays on his/her side, and the candle is placed pointy end in their ear. The other end is lit (yes, visions of shooting flames skyrocketing from the side of your head, but it's not nearly so drastic). As the candle burns, theoretically it creates a vacuum that draws a variety of 'crud' out of the ear canal. I was the lucky guinea pig selected to have her ears done at a Women's Institute meeting - so all the other ladies were sitting around watching! (they took pictures too, the meanines) The only thing we forgot for the demonstration was something for me to lay down on. Boy was that floor hard! As I said in my earlier post, the first ear worked, but the floor was probably just a little too hard by the time we got to the second ear. And as I also said - some people swear by it, others think its pure bunk. Personally, I would recommend having it done by someone who knows what they're doing. Here in Canada there are courses people can take for certification. When done by a qualified person, they ask a wide variety of questions beforehand. My friend from 'Sole Therapy' will refuse to candle the ears of anyone who doesn't fit her 100% OK list. (I don't know what the potential problems are.) Like anything concerning your health don't do anything blindly. Find qualified people and make an educated decision.

-- Bernie from Northern Ontario (Bernadette_kerr@hotmail.com), January 20, 2002.

Didn't you see when Shreck was sitting down to dinner in the movie? He made "ear" candles.

-- Jim Hammond (telephone_man@msn.com), January 20, 2002.


mark, i have used ear candles for years, and they dont work if it is not being done correctly.first they are made from muslin (cotton) and parafin or beeswax. they are rolled up like a cone and are hollow. a drop of olive oil is placed in the ear for a good seal. then the candle is placed in the ear and moved around till you have the feeling of your hearing being blocked, like being under water. then the candle is lit and after it burns about 1/2 inch it is carefully folded at the top to create the vacume effect.when the candle is burned down, remove and it will contain the ear wax. i have used them on children who have had constant earaches and had repeated visits to the dr. people with sinus infections and people that have lots of wax. they DO WORK. you just have to find someone that knows what they are doing. if the candle is not placed correctly the smoke can be drawn into the candle and then you will have real problems. also a good seal must be made with the oil and a good vacume must be created.they are also known as indian cones due to the fact american indian have used them for hundreds of years and they have also been found in egyptian tombs 4000 yrs old. hope this helps. cody

-- cody (urbusted@alltel.net), January 20, 2002.

have ahd them "done professionally",, still thinks its a bunch of bunk,, get an earflush kit from teh drug store,, works ALOT better

-- Stan (sopal@net-port.com), January 20, 2002.

stan, sorry you had such a bad experience. maybe your pro really wasnt a pro.which would explain why you think its a bunch of crap. whn i candle ears and people get better from cronic ear infections i dont believe its all i their head!! (pardon the pun) cody

-- cody (urbusted@alltel.net), January 20, 2002.

when you get the same results from "ear candleing" a paper plate,, doesnt tacke a rocket scientist

-- Stan (sopal@net-port.com), January 20, 2002.

I have used them on DH, he doesn't believe in using Qtips, he thinks they are bad for your ears. So he gets those "wax plugs" in his ears sometimes. The first time I bought them at our herbal store and gave them a try he was a little sceptical. You do have to get them positioned correctly, but DH says they worked wonders. Good Luck. Kim :-D

-- Kim in Indiana (kwcountrygirl@aol.com), January 20, 2002.


Just what is the problem with a little wax in the ears? I have (and everyone I know) lived all my life just fine by using a Q-tip every couple of days. I've got 2 children with fine pediatricians who've never said a word about this. We all hear just fine. I think a little earwax helps keep the bugs out when you're camping in the summer. Sounds a little to me like the people who were selling "belly button lint remover brushes" back in the 60's.

-- rose marie wild (wintersongfarm@yahoo.com), January 20, 2002.

Oh, but how good my belly button used to feel all cleaned out afterwards.

-- gilly (wayoutfarm@skybest.com), January 20, 2002.

If you want the definitive answer, burn one in an ear, and the 2nd one out of an ear. (HINT: they both will look the same when you peel the end-it has NO medical benefit)

-- Jim NE KY (Jedeweese@earthlink.net), January 20, 2002.

Whether it works or not, please be careful if doing it at home. There have been numerous injuries from mis-use and using them when you shouldn't. It should never be done if there is any kind of infection present, in either the ear or sinuses, there are lots of other times it's a bad idea so please see a professional.

Kristi

-- Kristi in Ontario, Canada (klteather@yahoo.ca), January 20, 2002.


My mother always said you could plant potatoes in my Dad's ears! :) Some peoples' bodies just don't get rid of the stuff or makes more of it than it should? My son (as a baby and a little boy) always had lots and lots more than his share of earwax..and guess who was elected to clean it out (Mom of course). I think it was all that good mother's milk. My 20 year old daughter went to the doctor because of an earache. The doctor washed her ears out and now she turns the radio DOWN and doesn't say "huh?" all the time. Lovin' it.

-- Susan in Northern Michigan (cobwoman@yahoo.com), January 21, 2002.


if you burn one in your ear and then one out and they look the same its because the one burned in your ear wasnt done correctly in the first place and and you will get the same results as the latter.HELLO?????doesnt take a rocket scientist to figure that one either.

-- cody (urbusted@alltel.net), January 21, 2002.

Well, finally I know what ear candles are! I've been hearing about them and wondered.

-- Ardie/WI (ardie54965@hotmail.com), January 21, 2002.

Well, now I too know what ear candles are...gez, never dreamed this topic was so controversial...takes me back to when we could discuss religion...LOL!

-- Karen (mountains_mama2@hotmail.com), January 21, 2002.

what i want to know is....where is mark???

-- cody (urbusted@alltel.net), January 21, 2002.

When I lived briefly in South Dakota, I saw a trained massage therapist used ear candles on my husband and several others....BUT...a few months ago in COUNTRYSIDE there was a brief article by a man who said his wife swore by ear candles but he set out to prove to her they didn't work. He said he showed her that he could "get wax" in the candles by using the candles on some other part of his body (I can't remember where) and that it was actually the wax from the candle in the cone and not wax from the ear brought up by the vacuum process....so who knows....

-- Suzy in Bama (slgt@yahoo.com), January 21, 2002.

We used ear candles on our 13 YO son and some of the wax dripped into his ear and stayed there! It turned black and after trying to get it out ourselves and nearly bursting his eardrum we spent $135 at the Ear, Nose, Throat Doctor getting it out. Yikes! Those things are expensive.

Be careful and don't take anyone's word on whether they work or not. The post before this one has it right--they don't work.

ddew from NE KY

-- ddew (ddew1962@earthlink.net), January 21, 2002.


In cases like these, I think the only thing we can do is post our experiences. Something that may not work FOR YOU, may produce positive results FOR SOMEONE ELSE. We tend to be cautious about these sort of things and have heard all these conflicting reports for several years. It wasn't until after a family member reported a postive experience with ear candles and a trusted DOCTOR suggested their use, did we try them. We were impressed and felt like it worked for our family.

-- Bren (wayoutfarm@skybest.com), January 21, 2002.

many years ago i had some weird ear thing (oh, at least 20) and over the years the left ear has gradually gotten "deafer". also, before i get sick i notice because the left ear starts to ache (no, i don't get ear aches proper...it is sort of like a "bad knee" that warns of a storm.

the ear candle soothes this ache. the other thing is, when i do it once or twice a year (and it usually ends up taking 3 candles in my left ear before I am done) I truly hear much much better and the "achiness" doesn't bother me for months. in fact I am getting ready to buy more candles because I haven't had time to do it for the last year and a half, and recently my ear "feels that way" all the time, and my hearing problem is worse.

my husband thinks it is hooey, and that all the yellow wax in the bottom is from the candle itself, which makes no sense to me because I have used both parafin and beeswax candles, and still get the same yellow gunk in the bottom of candle.

also, i can literally FEEL the wax move in my ear sometimes.

I think they are great, others thing them idiotic.

-- marcee (thathope@mwt.net), January 21, 2002.


Yes, I have seen ear candling done. Hubby used to think very highly of it, but I wasnt very impressed. Of course, I aint easily impressed with reflexology and aromatherapy either. lol. I get very good results with the careful use of bobby pins. Use the loop end, not the pointy one. (duh) Of course, you have to be very careful to not put it in too deep, but if you go slowly, your very capable nerve endings down in there will let you know when it is deep enough. Oh its sooo dangerous! yeah, they tell you all kinds of things are soooo dangerous... it is a profitable business to doctors to get you to come in so they can do all kinds of things to you that are toooo dangerous for you to do to yourself. lol Use common sense and pay attention to what your body is telling you at all times, and you will find out you will hurt yourself less than most doctors will. (I can hear it in the wings; "treason, treason!") Ok, go ahead, tell me how bad I am now. But I have been cleaning out my ears for 30 years now, since my mom taught me how when I was a kid. Havent punctured my eardrum once.

-- daffodyllady (daffodyllady@yahoo.com), January 22, 2002.

I'd never heard of ear candles 'til I moved to Fort Worth; however---

When I was little, my ears would hurt to the point where I was crying due to allergies. My grandma would make a cone out of newspaper, put some sewing machine oil in my ear, put the point of the cone in my ear, and light the other end of the cone with a match (a bucket of water was always on the floor). My ear would "pop" and liquid would come out of my ear. (She'd throw the cone into the water immediately after my shriek of surprise.) No more ear pain!

-- Laura -- Fort Worth, TX (lauragonza@aol.com), January 29, 2002.


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