Earache: Causes, Remedies, and Prevention

Boiling salt in a hot pot. Heated oil added with a dropper. Garlic and onion can be helpful for children.

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how to cure earache

It usually passes quickly, but during the time it lasts it is very painful and annoying: the earache. Not to be confused with more serious diseases such asotitis, mumps (in jargon it is called the "mumps" disease) and otalgiaEarache has very simple origins, ranging from a cold to poorly dried ears after getting out of the pool, to a real infection or some dental problem that makes chewing even terrible. symptoms They are reduced to pain that comes from inside the ear and which, without some intervention, tends to increase to the point of making sleep difficult, if not impossible.

The remedies

Here then 10 effective natural remedies to stop the pain of earache:

  • Sit down. A few minutes in an upright position reduces swelling and begins to drain fluid from the Eustachian tubes. Swallowing also reduces the pain. If you can, keep your head slightly elevated while sleeping to ensure better drainage.
  • Turn on the hair dryer. Grandpa's trick of blowing pipe smoke into your painful ear had a rational basis. It wasn't the smoke that relieved the pain, but the heat of the smoke. To achieve the same result without overburdening your lungs, turn the hair dryer on to a moderate heat. Then, holding the jet 50-60 centimeters from your ear, direct the warm air onto the painful ear..
  • A rag with salt. Still on the subject of grandparentsThe oldest remedy remains the most effective: direct contact of the ear with boiling salt. The procedure is very simple: heat double salt, the kind you use in the kitchen, and place it in a cloth, or even a sock. Then, place the very hot cloth containing the salt directly over the ear and hold it there for a few minutes.
  • Move your earThis is a test to determine whether you have external otitis (such as swimming pool ear infection) or middle ear infection (otitis media). Place your fingertips on the outer ear. If you can move your ear without pain, the problem is probably in the middle ear. If moving the ear causes pain, the infection is in the external canal.
  • Heated oilPlace a bottle of baby oil or Vaseline in a little body-temperature water. Leave the bottle in the water until the oil has warmed up. Then, using a dropper, take a drop or two of oil and place it in the painful ear. The pain will subside. Caution: Do not put liquids in your ear if you think your eardrum is ruptured or perforated.
  • Garlic e onion. To strengthen the soothing action of theolive oil, strengthen it with garlic and onion. The former can be obtained in liquid form after thoroughly cleaning the head, while for the onions, simply chop them before adding them to the oil you use for earache. An alternative, but not as effective, to olive oil is lavender oil, which also works thanks to its intense scent.
  • A chewing gum or a yawnEveryone knows this is a good way to clear your ears on a plane, but have you ever thought about it at midnight? The muscular action of chewing is the basis of the trick, because it opens the Eustachian tubes. Yawning moves the muscle that opens the Eustachian tubes, even better than chewing a chewing gum or sucking a candy.
  • Hold your noseIf you're flying at 35,000 feet and your ears start to hurt, here's what you can do, according to the American Academy of Otolaryngology. Pinch your nose. Take a deep breath, and then, using your cheek and neck muscles, push the air into your nose as if you were trying to push your fingers away. When the pressure inside your ears equals the pressure outside, you'll hear a pop.
  • Decongest yourselvesBefore you get into trouble, use an over-the-counter decongestant. For example, if you're flying and know your sinuses can cause problems and block your ears, take an anticongestant or nose drops an hour before landing. At home, use a decongestant at night, before going to bed with a constipated head: this will prevent midnight aches.
  • Be careful when divingLike airplane passengers, divers must be able to equalize the pressure inside their ears with the external pressure of the water, otherwise they may develop ear problems. Shallow diving activities are the most dangerous, because the greatest changes in air volume occur in relatively shallow water (less than ten meters). Avoid tight-fitting earplugs and suits with very tight hoods that prevent adjustment to pressure during descent. Swimming at the surface puts less strain on the eardrums than swimming underwater; it is recommended not to dive deeper than one meter to avoid pressure on the eardrums.

How to treat earache in children

Il earache It often affects the childrenThey suffer, sometimes cry, and show signs of strong anxiety. If the fever it's not too high (the sign of an infection), before calling the pediatrician and wasting money on some useless medicine, try one of these 10 natural remediesThey are very effective.

The remedies

Let's see together what they are:

  • Hot compressesVery hot water, almost boiling. Leave it on the inflamed ear for about 10-15 minutes. The pain relief effect is very rapid.
  • Hot clothInstead of water, you can use a boiling cloth with a double handful of salt inside. Again, the benefits should be immediate.
  • Olive oilPlace a small bottle of oil in boiling water to warm the liquid. Then pour the oil into a small cup or glass, and use a dropper to take 3-4 drops and place them in the baby's ear. Then, insert a cotton ball, without pushing it in too far, to dry.
  • OnionChop it very finely and place it in a linen bag or cotton handkerchief. Place the compress on the ear where the pain is coming from and secure it with a tie. The best time to use it is before the child falls asleep.
  • L'aglioIt is a natural antibiotic, widely used by the ancient Romans, which you can add to olive oil. It fights microbes and therefore...inflammation.
  • Lavender essential oil. Combine 2-3 drops of essential oil of lavender Mix a few drops of olive oil and pour it onto a cotton ball, then gently place it at the entrance of your ear, without pushing it all the way in. Don't keep the cotton ball in for too long: no more than an hour.
  • Lo gingerIt's a natural and very effective pain reliever. Place three drops of ginger juice in the ear and then dry it with a cotton ball.
  • Licorice. Heat a small dose of root extract of licorice in two tablespoons of butter, to form a paste. Apply to the outer ear after letting it cool, and leave it on until you see improvement.
  • Ear movementGently move your child's ear and jaw. This can help unblock the Eustachian tube, allowing trapped fluids to flow out and clear the blockage.
  • OtitisIf pain and fever persist, it is very likely that the child has an ear infection. At this point, the doctor's intervention is necessary, who will probably give the child some antibiotics.

natural remedies for treating earache in children 1

How long does earache last?

Given that the best prevention against earache is to pay attention, especially in winter, to gusts of wind and cold and water residues (for example, for those who go swimming), and by avoiding useless and polluting cotton swabs, so-called external otitis shouldn't last long. It manifests itself with:

  • pruritus
  • slight swelling
  • redness of the external part
  • sometimes real pain, accompanied by a worsening of thehearing.

Earache, even with natural remedies, should go away within a few days.; with oral medications, it shouldn't last more than a week. Otherwise, it's best to consult your doctor.

What to do when your ear hurts?

When you first feel ear pain, you need to understand its cause. Earache isn't always the same, and these differences also matter for potential remedies or more specific treatment. If, for example, you feel a blocked ear, a certain discomfort (not exactly pain), mild hearing loss, muffled perception of sounds and whistles, then it's probably just the earwax which in some way hinders the proper functioning of your hearing system. And there is a need for a ear cleaningAs in the case of water stagnation, after a bath, a shower, or a swim in the pool, which can cause the plug to increase in size.

What not to do when your ear hurts?

There are at least five things you should absolutely avoid when you have an earache.

  • Take the antibiotic which we've used on other occasions. In this case, it may not be necessary, and in any case, for this type of medication, you should always follow your doctor's instructions.
  • Apply pain-relieving ear dropsThey are not recommended for children under three years of age, especially if they have not yet been examined by a pediatrician.
  • Leave the ear dirtyIf the ear is blocked by earwax, it will also be difficult for the ENT doctor to make a diagnosis.
  • Stop at the symptoms and focus on do-it-yourself diagnosesWhen faced with a child who appears unwell, with fever, hearing loss, and ear discharge, we might be tempted to simplify matters with a do-it-yourself diagnosis. This is wrong: the pediatrician still needs to thoroughly examine the situation with an otoscope.
  • To panicEarache in children can be a panic attack. But we must know that otitis media is the most common childhood disease: approximately 80 percent of children under 3 years of age experience at least one episode of acute otitis media, and approximately a third of these episodes recur, sometimes frequently.

How to avoid ear infections

Ears are very sensitive, and to avoid infections, it's important to start with some simple but important precautions and good hygiene practices.

  • Do not use cotton swabs to clean earwax.These cotton swabs are the same size as the ear canal and therefore push the earwax deep into the eardrum. At that point, there is a risk of inflammation.
  • Don't play with pen caps by putting them in your earsThe sensation may even be pleasant, but the risk is the same as with cotton swabs: inflaming the eardrum.
  • On windy days, try to cover your ears.. there are many solutions: a hat, a scarf bandeau, a paraorecchieThe eardrum is very thin and high-speed air can carry viruses and bacteria.
  • It's called swimmer's ear, but it can affect anyone if we don't dry our ears properly after swimming or after bathing or showering. The ears should be rinsed and dried thoroughlyIt is the stagnation of water that causes otitis externa.
  • Always use the phon to dry the ears, selecting the minimum power, to give greater effectiveness to its action.

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