The Unintended Consequences of Cotton Swabs Posted on July 15, 2025 by Swank Family Hearing Most bathroom supplies are used as intended. Tissues are for blowing your nose and toothpaste is for brushing your teeth. However, there is one common item that most people use incorrectly: cotton swabs. The purpose of a cotton swab is to apply and remove makeup, and to use around the house for various purposes (arts and crafts projects, cleaning dirt from hard-to-reach areas, etc.). Unfortunately, their most common use has evolved over the years; many people now utilize cotton swabs for cleaning their ear canals and removing earwax. Ear, nose and throat doctors consider this a recipe for trouble. When cotton swabs are used to clean the ears, serious injury can occur. Doing so can damage the eardrum, and repeated use increases the risk of causing an ear infection or tinnitus. Most earwax is actually beneficial to ear functionality. It is a normal, natural protective coating for the sensitive skin of the ear canal. A canal coated with earwax will repel water and help prevent external ear infections. When the earwax is removed with a cotton swab it leaves the ear vulnerable. In addition, regularly using cotton swabs to clear earwax will push the wax further back into your ear than it is supposed to go. While cotton swabs are useful in many applications, avoid the temptation to use them to clean the sensitive ear canal.