cotton swabs are the most effective tools to clean your ears except soap and water, but you should rethink how to use them. A recent study from Henry Ford Hospital showed that direct contact with the ear with a cotton swab can damage the inner ear canal. But that doesn’t mean you can’t use them to clean other parts of the ear.

the first brand of cotton swabs said on its website, “gently wrap the cotton swab around the outer ear and don’t enter the ear canal.” It’s worth listening to. Cleaning the ear canal with a cotton swab can cause earwax embolism, which can lead to hearing loss. Earwax embolism is also known as oil ear, or worse, it can cause rupture of the eardrum. Atlanta Hawks guard Jeff Teague, who was deaf in his left ear last month and asked the doctor to remove his earwax, can prove this point.

“natural lubrication of earwax and external factors to protect your inner ear,” said Rachel

Pritzker, M.D., a dermatologist in Chicago. Unless you don’t want to get rid of all this. If you want a little advice on cleaning your ears, the study recommends mixing low-temperature refrigerated peroxide or vinegar with warm water, and then dropping four to five drops in each ear canal with an eyedropper.

if you don’t want to treat the back of hard of hearing ears in the doctor’s office, remember to rinse your ear canal every day instead of picking out your ears with a cotton swab.