Ear Wax Removal - The Best Mod?

Discussion in 'Health' started by Ox Cart, May 12, 2023.

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  1. Chris Cables

    Chris Cables MOT: Chris Cables

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    I'd probably need to adjust the exposure if I used one of those due to the light coming in from the other side of my noggin.
    :D
     
  2. Jdriver

    Jdriver New

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    I’ve been to the audiologist twice in the last 2 weeks trying to get impressions made to have my customs reshelled and both times was told I had too much wax. He told me to keep trying at home to avoid the 150 charge for him to do it. I told him I’d been leaving the Debrox in for 5 minutes and he said that’s the problem, it needs to stay in for at least 15 minutes and then mucho rinsing.
    Sure enough, did that and got out a huge nasty plug. Hopefully next time I’ll get the impressions.
     
  3. Metro

    Metro Friend

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    Two remedies have worked for me.

    My ears would get clogged occasionally, and my doctor told me that I could keep them clear with regular 3% hydrogen peroxide from the drug store. Put it in a dropper bottle and drip it into the ear, let it sit about a minute, then tilt your head to let it drain out. Doing this on a regular schedule, such as weekly or when you take a shower, will keep your ears clear. This works for me, although I would become lax about keeping up the routine, and then I would occasionally accumulate some wax.

    About 5 years ago I was developing a skin condition, and it was recommended that I consume omega-3 oil, which I did with omega-3 fish oil capsules. My condition cleared up and I continued taking it daily because it helped my skin in multiple ways. A couple of years ago, I was reading a discussion about earwax on another audio forum and someone said to take omega-3 oil. At that point, I realized that I hadn't done the peroxide thing for quite some time but I was no longer having an issue with earwax. I looked it up and discovered that it is medically well established that omega-3 deficiency is a cause of excess earwax.
    https://www.google.com/search?q=omega-3+deficiency+earwax
    So for me, this was the root cause of my earwax issue, and taking omega-3 directly addresses it. It is worth looking into because omega-3 has many health benefits and a deficiency could be affecting other aspects of your health.
     
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  4. Thad E Ginathom

    Thad E Ginathom Friend

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    Wow, never heard that one! And it doesn't even involve burning any snakes, so I shall try it.

    Thank you.
     
  5. Metro

    Metro Friend

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    It's strange that I hadn't seen it mentioned before either, because it isn't obscure knowledge. If you looked at my link, excess ear wax is commonly listed as one of the symptoms of omega-3 deficiency. Be aware that it won't clear out your existing ear wax, and it may take a couple of months for your body to adjust and lower its production of cerumen (earwax).

    I've been taking this twice daily:
    [​IMG]
     
  6. Armaegis

    Armaegis Friend

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    But how do you get those pills in your ears? :D
     
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  7. Riotvan

    Riotvan Snoofer in the Woofer

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    Gently squeeze and roll and then insert to allow them to form to your ear. What do you mean you only hear mono now?
     
  8. Thad E Ginathom

    Thad E Ginathom Friend

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    Now I have to go and get the fish oil syringed out of my ears.

    Putting the capsules in was ok. But I really should have listened to myself when it just seemed wrong to then light the cone things.

    And I stink of cod.
     
  9. Ox Cart

    Ox Cart Facebook Friend

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    I found some research that might explain my changed perception of the LCD2. Like most filters, the effect of earwax varies across frequencies. This study found that 4 KHz was most impacted (sorry for the pun). 4 KHz is exactly the area where Audeze's classic tuning is more laid back than most.

    So, for people who don't like the old Audeze house sound - just clean your ears ;)
     
  10. zottel

    zottel Friend

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    Just got my ears cleaned again—and man, does my system sound great! \o/

    And: @Metro ’s tip about omega-3 oil seems to work, at least for me. I took omega-3 oil for about half a year now for other reasons, and when I read the post above I decided to keep taking it when I wasn’t required to do so anymore.

    Anyway, my otologist removed much less ear wax than usual. I was actually disappointed that, this time, the world wasn’t overly bright (tonally) afterwards. :) I asked him what he thought about omega-3 oil as a remedy, and he said that there weren’t many studies as ear wax isn’t a very popular subject to study, apparently. It helped some but didn’t help others.

    He then asked if I took omega-3 oil and I said that I did for roughly the past half year. He said it obviously helped in my case, as he removed much, much less ear wax this time.

    I will keep on taking omega-3 oil for sure. :)
     
  11. lithium

    lithium Almost "Made"

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    I am just going to quote some preventive advice from websites for medical providers here: I would suggest this method should not be used in anyone with existing ENT issues or prior ear surgery.

    "In our practice, we suggest that patients with a history of recurring symptomatic cerumen impaction (>once per year despite cerumen removal) and otherwise normal ears use a cotton ball dipped in mineral oil and place in the external canal for 10 to 20 minutes once per week (combined with eight hours of not using a hearing aid overnight, if applicable). This helps to liquefy the cerumen and aid the normal elimination mechanisms, thereby potentially reducing the number of visits per year for cerumen removal.'

    Additionally, there is existing objective hearing improvement noted with cerumen removal (as much as 36db in some people with impaction!!). These people went to the doctor with complaints about their hearing so improvement is expected to be more than others. Source : Effectiveness of ear syringing in general practice: a randomised controlled trial and patients' experiences - PubMed (nih.gov)
     

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