The Complete Handbook of Ear Candles

Chapter 1: Understanding Ear Candles

Ear candles, also known as ear cones or auricular candles, are hollow tubes of wax-impregnated fabric, typically between twenty and thirty centimeters long. They are cone-shaped, with one narrow end designed to sit at or just inside the entrance of the ear canal, and a wider base end that is lit. As the candle burns, the residual product is a powdery ash. The hollow interior of the tube creates a flue-like column, which is the core principle of the device.

To understand how an ear candle works, you have to ignore a significant amount of marketing language that surrounds the product. The popular claim is that the candle creates a vacuum that "draws out" earwax, toxins, and debris from the ear canal. This is not an accurate description of the physical reality. A candle is an open-bottomed tube sitting in front of the ear drum; it does not create a sealed chamber. The heat of the flame, however, does cause a column of warm air to rise inside the candle. This creates a slight, measurable negative pressure at the base of the candle. It is critical for professionals to be honest with themselves and their clients about the magnitude of this effect. It is not a vacuum. It is a gentle convective draft that can be measured in a laboratory, but it will not physically pull a solid mass of cerumen out of the ear canal.

So what does an ear candle actually do? From