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Taking Care of Your Ears: The Facts On Earwax

Taking care of your ears is important. Earwax protects the ear canal but can be removed by gentle washing. Do not put anything smaller than an elbow in your ear like cotton swabs which can push wax deeper or cause infections. See a doctor if you think there is too much wax. Pierced ears need good care like keeping earrings in until healed and preventing infections with cleaning to avoid problems. Swimmers should dry ears well to prevent infections. Protect ears from sunburn and frostbite by wearing hats.

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82 views2 pages

Taking Care of Your Ears: The Facts On Earwax

Taking care of your ears is important. Earwax protects the ear canal but can be removed by gentle washing. Do not put anything smaller than an elbow in your ear like cotton swabs which can push wax deeper or cause infections. See a doctor if you think there is too much wax. Pierced ears need good care like keeping earrings in until healed and preventing infections with cleaning to avoid problems. Swimmers should dry ears well to prevent infections. Protect ears from sunburn and frostbite by wearing hats.

Uploaded by

Mocha Borgs
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Taking Care of Your Ears

Reviewed by: Steven P. Cook, MD

As body parts go, your ears don't ask for much. They don't need to be brushed like your teeth or
trimmed like your toenails. All your ears need is to be washed regularly, so wash them with soap and
water while you're sudsing up the rest of your body in the bath or shower.

The Facts on Earwax


You might wonder about earwax and whether it needs to be cleaned out. Actually, even though
earwax seems yucky, it serves a purpose. Your ear canal makes earwax to protect the ear. After it is
produced, it slowly makes its way to the opening of the ear. Then it either falls out or is removed
when you wash. If you want, you can clean the opening of your ear gently with a washcloth.

There's an old saying that you shouldn't put anything smaller than your elbow in your ear. Not all old
sayings are true, but this one is! You can hurt your ear by poking around in there. It's not even a
good idea to use a cotton swab. This can push wax deeper in your ear, where it can get stuck.
Irritating the ear canal with a cotton swab can even lead to an ear canal infection.

And definitely don't put anything sharp in your ear because it can cause bleeding or serious damage.
If you think you have dirt or too much earwax in your ear, ask your mom or dad to make an
appointment with the doctor to clean it out.

Taking Care of Pierced Ears


Pierced ears may look pretty, but you need to take good care of them or things can get ugly! When
you first get your ears pierced, leave the earrings in until your ears are completely healed. If you
don't, your holes could close up.

You'll also want to prevent infections in your newly pierced ears. Wash your hands before touching
your pierced ears. Applying rubbing alcohol also can help keep germs away. With an adult's help,
soak a cotton ball in rubbing alcohol and apply it to both sides of the hole (with the earring still in
your ear). Then twirl the earring several times to make sure the alcohol gets in and around the
earring post.
If you think one of your pierced ears may be infected, tell your mom or dad. An infected earlobe may
be swollen, red, warm, and painful, and it may ooze a fluid called pus. Don't wait for it to get better
by itself.

Tips for Swimmers


Sometimes, swimming can lead to a case of swimmer's ear. That's when your outer ear gets
infected, causing swelling and pain. This happens when water gets stuck in your ear canal. This can
irritate the skin, making it easier for bacteria to invade the skin and cause an infection. If you think
you have swimmer's ear, your mom or dad needs to call the doctor. Special ear drops can help you
get rid of it.
Ears, Hot and Cold
When the sun is beating down, wear a hat or remember to rub some  sunscreen on your ears, so
they don't get fried. And when winter rolls around, keep them covered up with a hat or headband.
Why? Because when it's freezing outside, it's easy for ears to get frostbitten. Brrrr!

Reviewed by: Steven P. Cook, MD

Date reviewed: April 2016

Source: https://kidshealth.org/en/kids/ear-care.html

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