If you're suddenly losing some hearing in one or both of your ears, you may be experiencing an excess of cerumen, also known as ear wax. Cerumen is a sticky substance normally produced in our ear canals.

Typically, the motion of our jaw plus the action of millions of tiny hairs slowly and continuously moves ear wax toward the outer opening of the ear canal, where it falls away harmlessly. And because it's sticky, cerumen catches small debris as it moves out, thus helping to keep the ear clear.

Some people have trouble with too much cerumen in the ear canal. The most common symptom is reduced hearing, especially when the entire canal is completely plugged with wax (this is called cerumen impaction). Sometimes water gets stuck behind the wax, causing a sense of pressure, fluid, popping in the ear, or all 3 symptoms. There can also be pain or itching when cerumen accumulates.

Several things contribute to ear wax building up, and most of them are beyond anyone's ability to control. Narrow ear canals and progressive growth of hair in the canals (the larger hairs that we can see, not the tiny ones that move cerumen along) are two factors. Hearing aids can worsen the problem, because they block the normal flow of wax out of the ear. And some people are just genetically predisposed to make more cerumen than usual or to have particularly sticky cerumen.

Fortunately, this problem is more annoying than harmful, and there are several things you can do to prevent or treat it:

• NEVER put anything in your ear. Many people try to clean out their ear canals with cotton swabs or Q-tips ... or worse. Although you can often get some wax out that way, these approaches always push some or even most of the cerumen further in. If you don't believe me, try putting some toothpaste or mashed potatoes in a very narrow funnel, then use a cotton swab to try to get it all out from the wide end, without pushing any further in. Oh — and wait — if this demonstration is going to be fair, you also have to close your eyes, since none of us can see inside our own ear canals.
  
  It's OK to wipe your outer ear with a tissue or swab, but the single most important step you can take to avoid cerumen impaction is to never put any object into your ear.
  
• Rinse your ear canals. The easiest way to do this is in the shower. Since our ear canals are angled forward toward our face, you'll need to tug back and up on your outer ear as you aim the water directly into the canal. You can often tell if the angle is correct because you'll feel the water running deep into your ear. After a few seconds, shake your head sideways and downward to get out as much water as you can. Repeat as often as desired. After the shower, dry your outer ear, but don't put a towel or tissue into the ear canal itself. You can safely use a hair dryer on a low setting if you need to dry inside the ear canal.
  
  A small plastic bottle or syringe can also be used to squirt water into the ear, but you must be careful that nothing but water actually goes inside the ear canal. Avoid high pressure devices (like dental water jets) because they can damage the eardrum. Also, don't attempt to rinse your ears if you have ear tubes or you think you might have a ruptured ear drum.
  
• Soften the wax. There are several effective treatments to soften and break up ear wax. I prefer hydrogen peroxide — mix 3-percent hydrogen peroxide solution with an equal part of warm water and put a few drops in your ear. Debrox® and similar over-the-counter ear wax treatments contain carbamide peroxide, which is similar to hydrogen peroxide. These products can cause irritation, however, so rinse your ear with water a few minutes after using them. Mineral oil, baby oil, olive oil, or a similar lubricant can be helpful, too. Any of these treatment options may have to be repeated for several days to clear the initial obstruction. After that, regular rinsing plus occasional softeners are often adequate to prevent further accumulation of cerumen.
  
• Don't use ear candles. A popular home remedy is to place a hollow, cone-shaped candle in the ear and allow it to burn. This is supposed to create a vacuum to suck out the cerumen. Studies have shown that this actually does not work at all. Even worse, the candle can deposit candle wax and other debris in the ear canal. Also, some people have suffered burns from the flame or trauma from inserting the object into the ear canal.

If you still have ear discomfort or reduced hearing or both after softening the wax and rinsing your ear canals, see a doctor to get any remaining cerumen removed safely. In addition, a careful medical evaluation can determine whether something other than ear wax is causing your symptoms.