Not many people have heard about ear candling so I thought I’d post about it.  My brother used to get a LOT of ear infections when we were younger and my mom, being very into home remedies learned about ear candling as a natural way to prevent ear infections.

We use it on my husband for a different reason- so much wax!  He tends to have a lot of wax and although we do use q-tips they’re not the best option because they can push wax deeper into the ear (especially when he has so much)  The cool thing about these ear candles is anyone can use them.

How ear candling works:
Have the person lay down on their side
You place the hollow candle inside the ear (it doesn’t have to be too far in, but just in enough so the hole points in your ear and is not blocked)
Make a dough out of just flour and water and place it around the ear and candle. (to seal the ear)

Then use tinfoil to protect the person from ashes.
You will now have a candle sticking up in the air- light the end on fire
As the end burns it creates a vacuum effect- sucking up the wax and infection from the ear.

When it burns down to the tinfoil use a wet paper towel to put out the fire and remove the remaining candle from the ear.  You can cut open the candle and see all the wax if you want.

Once you’ve done it a few times you’ll be able to tell how long to let it burn.  My mom used to burn ours to about 2-3 inches from the tinfoil.  Because my husband has so much wax it will actually pull up to where the fire is I can stop his at about 5 inches from the tinfoil.

When you are the one having it done to you- it’s not painful at all.  You will hear some crackling and popping noises as the fire burns but that’s it.  If the candle is being put out too close to the tinfoil there might be a loud sizzle sound.  Other than that it’s best to just lay down and watch some TV.  It will take about 10 minutes.

These are a great thing to have on hand or in food storage since they have no expiration date and can save from Dr and medicine costs if needed.
I purchased my candles on Amazon.  My mom used to make hers by wrapping shredded cloth around a large metal knitting dowel, then pouring melted paraffin wax on the cloth.  They can be hard to get off the dowel and take a little time to make.  The cost to purchase them is about $1 each so for me it’s worth my time to just buy them.