Believe it or not, our ears are self-cleaning. Wax, in fact, is our friend, protecting our ears from bacteria, bugs and dirt. However, sometimes we produce too much, which is when many us reach for a cotton bud. Sound familiar? If you rely on cotton buds to give your ears a clean, then, here is one punchy cautionary tale, courtesy of Dr Kunal Karade. Dr Karade, from Nagpur, India, recently had to remove part of a Q-tip which had gotten lodged deep inside in a patient's ear canal. This may sound unpleasant in itself. However, the patient in question was oblivious to the fact the rogue bit of bud had been in there for five days. He had gone to visit the doctor because of a blocked and itchy ear, with the bud luckily being discovered during a check-up. In a patient guide , Oxford University Hospitals explain: "The skin in your ears acts like a conveyor belt. It travels along your ear canal from your ear drum bringing any debris with it. "If you use cotton buds or anything else to clean your ears, you can disrupt the ears' natural cleaning system." "Often the only thing this achieves is to push wax further down the ear canal, making you feel deaf temporarily and causing damage to your ear canal or your ear drum." If your 'conveyor belt' isn't working and you experience a build-up of ear wax, the best thing to do is visit your doctor to have your ears cleaned out in a simple procedure. mirror.co.uk
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