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Basic Ear Care

A preventative measure is one of the best ways to avoid going to the doctor’s and paying for visits that have to do with minor ear problems. The real problem however is determining which ear problems are minor and which are major. For the small child, one who is not old enough to talk yet, you can determine that a child has an ear ache when they are constantly crying, pulling on their ears, or most often when they are cranky and a cough is associated with the crying. You must also beware that there are most signs, and sometimes no signs at all when a small child has an earache but the ones listed above are the most common. 

An earache is usually a sign of an ear infection or ear damages, but often you will find yourself in the middle of the night or on the weekend facing a crying baby or child, and you can’t get to the doctors until Monday morning, so in this article we are going to provide you with additional earache treatments so that you can soothe the baby or child and prolong treatment until Monday avoiding a trip the emergency room. 

One thing should be mentioned, this article is only meant to prolong the need to go to the doctors, these hints and ideas are not meant to cure or treat ear infections or problems, the tips and ideas are presented to ease the pain while waiting until you can get to the doctors office for a prescription. 

For a person who have an earache, of any age, taking an aspirin, or a liquid form of aspirin in the recommended dosage on the label, will help lessen the pain from an earache so you don’t have to rush off to the doctor’s in the middle of the night. The most common reasons for earaches are respiratory illnesses or water in the ear. Keeping the ear dry, and not putting anything in the ear (like a napkin or qtip) would be best for both children and adults. 

To soothe the pain of an earache, swollen glands or a headache, a warm cloth can be placed on the ear that is hurting. The warmth gives temporary relief from pain fast. Continuing to run the washcloth under warm water and then ringing it about dry will continue to give earache relief. 

A hot water bottle is another method of finding earache relief, or a heating pad kept on low, (and supervising young children) will give heat need for a soothing relief. 

If you have an earache that you think is caused from a build of up of wax, you can buy an ear cleaning kit at most all pharmacies. This ear cleaning kit will provide more information on exactly how to clean your ears safely and after the wax is removed you will find you will hear clearer and your earaches will stop. 

Listening to loud music, loud noises and other high shrilling noises can cause ringing in the ears, earaches and hearing loss. If you find that you are having ear aches and you are subject to loud or shrill noises daily, you should consider finding and using ear protection so you don’t continue to have these earaches and you will protect your hearing for the long term. 

Earaches and ear infections are often brought on by sinus infections. If you have a cold, continue trying to blow your nose to keep drainage from reaching your ears when you are lying down. Fluid from your sinuses can sometimes reach your ears when you sleep causing earaches. 

As you are putting your young children to bed, not giving them a bottle when they are lying down is an ‘old wives tale’ that will prevent earaches in babies. While there is little proof, some babies are more prone to have ear infections and earaches when they are put to sleep with a bottle. 

Another ‘old wives tale’ that is often used, but has not been researched by this author, is that putting a few drops of hydrogen peroxide in your ear when you have an earache will stop the pain. Just keep your head sideways for a few moments and then turn your head over letting the peroxide run out of your ear, cleaning out wax and moisture at the same time. Use this at your own risk, but this author has had some success with the method. 

Prevent earaches for children by not letting them run their ears under the water for long periods of time over and over again. If the children are avid swimmers, wearing a cap to protect their ears may be needed. 

Smoking in the house is known to have adverse affects on children, with one side effect being that these children are more often going to get respiratory problems, which is how an ear infection gets started. Smoking in another room or smoking outside would help prevent additional earaches and ear infections in small children.

Visitors comments

Pain Relief for Earache Comments By: Allison on 2005-05-30 Thank you. It's 2am & my 4yr old has been crying since 4pm. Went to emergency doctor and he gave us painkillers but they don't seem to be much help. Hot water bottle has finally got her off to sleep. Thank you. Â