Ear candling, also calledear coning orthermal-auricular therapy, is apseudoscientific[1]alternative medicine practice claiming to improve general health and well-being by lighting one end of a hollowcandle and placing the other end in theear canal. Medical research has shown that the practice is both dangerous and ineffective[2] and does not functionally removeearwax ortoxicants, despite product design contributing to that impression.[3]
One end of a cylinder or cone of waxed cloth is lit, and the other is placed into the subject's ear. The flame is cut back occasionally with scissors and extinguished between five and ten centimeters (two to four inches) from the subject.
The subject lies on one side with the treated ear uppermost and the candle vertical. The candle can be stuck through a paper plate or aluminium pie tin to protect against any hot wax or ash falling onto the subject. Another way to perform ear candling involves the subject lying face up with the ear candle extending out to the side with a forty-five-degree upward slant. A dish of water is placed next to the subject under the ear candle.
Proponents claim that the flame creates negative pressure, drawing wax and debris out of the ear canal,[4][better source needed] which appears as a dark residue.
An ear candling session lasts up to one hour, during which one or two ear candles may be burned for each ear.
Professor of Complementary MedicineEdzard Ernst wrote about ear candles: "There is no data to suggest that it is effective for any condition. Furthermore, ear candles have been associated with ear injuries. The inescapable conclusion is that ear candles do more harm than good. Their use should be discouraged."[5][6]
According to the USFood and Drug Administration (FDA), ear candling is sometimes promoted with claims that the practice can "purify the blood" or "cure" cancer.Health Canada has determined the candles do not affect the ear, and provide no health benefit; instead, they create a risk of injury, especially when used on children.[7] In October 2007, US FDA issued an alert identifying ear candles (also known as ear cones or auricular candles) as "dangerous to health when used in the dosage or manner, or with the frequency or duration, prescribed, recommended, or suggested in the labeling thereof ... since the use of a lit candle in the proximity of a person's face would carry a high risk of causing potentially severe skin/hair burns and middle ear damage."[8]
A 2007 paper in the journalCanadian Family Physician concludes:
Ear candling appears to be popular and is heavily advertised with claims that could seem scientific to lay people. However, its claimed mechanism of action has not been verified, no positive clinical effect has been reliably recorded, and it is associated with considerable risk. No evidence suggests that ear candling is an effective treatment for any condition. On this basis, we believe it can do more harm than good and we recommend that GPs discourage its use.[9]
A 2007 paper inAmerican Family Physician said:
Ear candling also should be avoided. Ear candling is a practice in which a hollow candle is inserted into the external auditory canal and lit, with the patient lying on the opposite ear. In theory, the combination of heat and suction is supposed to remove earwax. However, in one trial, ear candles neither created suction nor removed wax and actually led to occlusion with candle wax in persons who previously had clean ear canals. Primary care physicians may see complications from ear candling including candle wax occlusion, local burns, and tympanic membrane perforation.[10]
TheSpokane Ear, Nose, and Throat Clinic conducted a research study in 1996, which concluded that ear candling does not produce negative pressure and is ineffective in removing wax from the ear canal.[2] Several studies have shown that ear candles produce the same residue — which is simply candle wax and soot — when burnt without ear insertion.[2][11][12]
At least two house fires (one fatal) have been caused by accidents during ear candling.[13]
A survey ofear, nose and throat surgeons found some who had treated people with complications from ear candling, and that burns were the most common.[14]
In Europe, some ear candles bear theCE mark (93/42/EEC), though they are mostly self-issued by the manufacturer. This mark indicates that the device is designed and manufactured so as not to compromise the safety of patients, but no independent testing is required as proof.[15]
While ear candles are widely available in the US, selling or importing them with medical claims is illegal.[8]
In a report,Health Canada states "There is no scientific proof to support claims that ear candling provides medical benefits. ... However, there is plenty of proof that ear candling is dangerous". It says that while some people claim to be selling the candles "for entertainment purposes only", the Canadian government maintains that there is no reasonable non-medical use, and hence any sale of the devices is illegal inCanada.[16][17]
Ear candle manufacturer Biosun referred to them as "Hopi" ear candles, but there is no such treatment within traditionalHopi healing practices. Vanessa Charles, public relations officer for theHopi Tribal Council, has stated that ear candling "is not and has never been a practice conducted by the Hopi tribe or the Hopi people."[17] The Hopi tribe has repeatedly asked Biosun to stop using the Hopi name.[18] Biosun ignored the request for over a decade until sometime after 2014[19] when the product was rebranded as "traditional earcandles" in Germany, although the product is still marketed by third-party US resellers as "Hopi".
Many advocates of ear candles claim that the treatment originates from traditional Chinese, Egyptian, or North American medicine. The mythical city ofAtlantis is also reported to be the origin of this practice, which has no documentation.[20] The earliest records state that it was first practiced by Americans in the 20th century from some European immigrants. It developed largely in Arizona.[21]
