<html><DIV> <P><BR><BR></P> <DIV></DIV> <P>List, </P></DIV> <P>Being somewhat alarmed by the general lack of information we have about our most important tool, our hearing, I recently finished a course from CAOHC (Council for Accreditation in Occupational Hearing Conservation) and became a certified occupational hearing conservationist. </P> <DIV></DIV> <P> In our course we were taught "Considered undesirable by many, cerumen (earwax) has several important functions.</P> <DIV></DIV> <P>a. Skin moisturizer- The temperature inside the canal is nearly as warm as the interior of the body. Under these conditions, the skin without the protective cerumen would become dry.  This is the principle reason that aggressive and constant removal of the cerumen often leads to itching in the canals.</P> <DIV></DIV> <P>b. Antiseptic- Cerumen is mildly antiseptic which serves to discourage growths in the otherwise warm, friendly environment of the canal.</P> <DIV></DIV> <P>c. Cleansing-Debris is removed as cerumen makes its way out of the canal.</P> <DIV></DIV> <P>Earplugs do not cause earwax but they may  exacerbate wax build up to the extent that periodic removal becomes necessary............... (Like Tom Armstrong suggested, our teacher recommended Hydrogen Peroxide, although he didn't say anything about shaking the head vigorously).</P> <DIV></DIV> <P>While earwax is often cited by patients as the source of hearing problems it almost never is an actual cause of substantial loss."</P> <DIV></DIV> <P>David Love said it excellently:<BR><BR>> </P> <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV>>I would be very hesitant to recommend this procedure to anyone. I would <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV>>check with an ENT person but cleaning the ears in this manner is generally <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV>>totally unnecessary. Ears are self-cleaning. The wax exists to protect the <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV>>inner ear from the accumulation of dirt and moves naturally to the outer <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV>>part of the ear canal. The danger of cleaning with q-tips and such inside <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV>>the ear canal is that it tends to push the wax back in and pack it down <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV>>where it can impair hearing and become difficult to remove. <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV>> <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV></DIV> <P></P>Diane Hofstetter <BR>245-M Mount Hermon Rd.#343 <BR>Scotts Valley, CA 95066 <BR>ph 831-438-6222 <BR>fax 831-430-9741 <BR>dianepianotuner@hotmail.com <BR><br clear=all><hr>Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at <a href="http://explorer.msn.com">http://explorer.msn.com</a><br></p></html>