Ear wax isn’t made of wax

The scientific name for earwax is cerumen. Cerumen is a combination of sebum – essentially skin cells that have fallen off from inside the ear – bits of hair and secretions from the ceruminous glands in the outer ear canal. The consistency and colour may differ between people. Although often a yellow-brownish gooey build-up, in northeastern Asia in countries such as China, earwax appears as a more dry, pale and flaky substance. The role of this wax is to trap debris and bacteria within the ear channel, preventing it from damaging or infecting our invaluable eardrums.

In the US, using cotton buds to clean out ears causes more than 10,000 injuries a year