Lend me your ears: Devotees wax on about ear candling
I never imagined that I would pay someone to stick a lit, 10-inch candle in my ear, but that is how I spent a recent afternoon on a masseuse's table at Giuliano, a posh Back Bay spa.
Ear candling, or ''ear coning" for insiders, is advertised as benefiting anyone in need of thorough ear wax removal. A handful of spas in metropolitan Boston offer the experience for $50 to $60, although the intrepid can buy ear candles wholesale and use them themselves for $3 apiece.
Ear candles are 10 to 12 inches long and five-eighths of an inch in diameter. The candles are hollow (there are no wicks), made from cotton coated in beeswax or paraffin, and tapered to a point at the bottom. A round plate surrounds the base of the candle to catch any ash or dripping wax. The recipient lies on one side, and the pointed end of the candle goes into his or her ear. The smoke inside the hollow candle, which is lit at the end opposite the ear, will travel into the ear canal, supposedly heating and loosening the wax. The smoke is supposed to create a vacuum and pull the wax out of the ear and into the base of the candle.
When I arrived at Giuliano for my ear-candling session, the esthetician informed me that because of the interconnected nature of the ears, nose, and throat, my ability to hear, smell, and taste would increase exponentially for ''a few" days. My interpretation was that I would leave the spa as Catwoman. Once I assured her that I did not have any outstanding ear injuries, she began the procedure. As she began to massage the base of my ear, she whispered that I should feel free to fall asleep. I did not fall asleep. I remained in a paranoid, alert mode to ensure that nothing, including my ear, was lighted on fire.
Thirty minutes later we were done, and the esthetician cut open both candle stubs to display what she said had been the wax formerly in my ears. I estimated that the 3 inches of candle-shaped wax she was showing me was, more likely, candle wax. I left the spa with a headache, probably attributable to smoke exposure in a small, unventilated room and the stress of having a lighted candle placed in each ear.
Spas and private practitioners say that, in addition to solving pesky wax buildup problems, ear candling alleviates health problems from common colds, allergies, and sinus infections to severe migraine headaches, lymphatic circulation, and symptoms of Mnire's disease (onsets of vertigo and tinnitus caused by a buildup of fluid in the inner ear). What does the medical establishment say? In October 1996, the journal Laryngoscope published a study that concluded, ''Ear candles have no benefit in the management of cerumen [ear wax] and may result in serious injury." The study identified 21 ear-candling injuries including burns and occlusions of the ear canal, temporary hearing loss, and one tympanic membrane perforation. Additionally, in September 1998, the US Food and Drug Administration issued an import alert against ear candles due to false advertising as a medical product.
Ear-candle sales are illegal in Canada without a license (and none has been granted), according to Health Canada, the nation's health department. I did not find any regulatory requirements for education or licensure in the United States.
Christine Haddad, director of spa services for Giuliano, described the training process for her own estheticians.
''My staff goes through significant training. Not all staff can do it. [Training includes] demos, practice, and product knowledge. They take a medical history from the client and figure out what the client is looking for. There are many contraindications in which ear candling cannot be done," she said.
What about the warnings by medical professionals? According to Haddad, the injuries resulted from insufficient training.
Ear candling ''has been around for centuries and is an ancient procedure. If someone is not trained properly, there could be problems," Haddad said.
I felt much better about my session, though it was nothing I would do a second time. And for the record, none of my senses increased. Further research led me to the seemingly even riskier world of unsupervised home practices. One do-it-yourself kit online sells for $33 and includes the manual, ''A practical guide to ear candling," a four-pack of ear candles, and ''Wally's Ear Oil."
I don't think I'll start my own practice, quite yet.
