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Passed on to Europeans by the Hopi Indians, thermo auricular therapy has gripped the public’s imagination. Until it became popular, one never thought candles could somehow substitute the doctor’s ear syringe.
Otherwise known as Hopi ear coning or candling, thermo auricular therapy is mainly designed to draw out excessive earwax. Among a host of other benefits, it could help equalise the pressure in the ears; alleviate sinusitis, tinnitus, hay fever, and glue ear; stimulate the lymph glands; and even cure Meniere's disease. It could repair hearing loss to an extent and, at the very least, relieve stress, headaches, and migraines.
Hopi ear candling has become a staple in spas, alternative medicine centers, and massage parlors. For £20 to £60, customers could already avail of a blissful 50-minute ear candling session. Alternatively, one could buy Hopi ear candle kits online and at select health food stores.
A Hopi ear candle is tellingly different from an ordinary candle. It is a conic piece of linen, silk or cotton, usually nine to 12 inches long, coated with beeswax or paraffin. Some candles contain essential oils, while others have chamomile, sage, honey, organic flax and St John's Wort.
The candle is inserted inside the auditory canal, after which it is lit. The burning ear cone then forms a vacuum, sucking out impurities like smoke would rise from a chimney. Much of the impurities would be caught in the hollow of the candle. If not, the earwax would be expelled up to three days afterwards.
Even before the Hopis, ear candling was already in vogue in ancient Greece and India. It later spread to the communities of Siberia, Asia, South America and, eventually, the Hopi Indians of North America. But it wasn’t until the 1990s when it truly took off.
An ear cone is quite safe to handle. Many candle varieties come with plugs inside, to prevent residue from seeping into the ear. Some Hopi ear candle companies are even certified medical products in Europe, bearing CE marks.
