Whoa That's Weird: Street-side Ear Cleaning

Probably one of my grossest WTW episodes to date although apparently some people are really into this shit:

I’ll tell you what though Q-tips are the biggest scam on the market. Zero doctors recommend using them to clean your ears and there is a warning on their package that straight up says “DON’T PUT THESE IN YOUR EARS” and yet that’s exactly what everybody does. Probably because they’re more or less ear dildos and it feels damn good to give the canal a nice pounding every once in a while.

In reality though, they just push earwax deeper in your ears.

So be careful with those things unless you want to end up on the street getting stones of wax yanked out of you by a traditional Chinese ear doctor. Usually rinsing your ears with a little warm water every day will do the trick.

Apparently street-side ear cleaning is a very popular pastime in parts of China though:

(Daily Mail) “Traditional ear cleaners are said to use up to eight different tools, including wires, copper tongs, wooden scoops and goose down, in order to reach every nook and cranny of their customers’ ear canals.

Although the thought can be scary, the experience is apparently enjoyable as it has grown to be one of Chengdu residents’ favourite leisure activities in the past two decades.

Customers typically pay four to 10 Yuan (£0.4-£1) for a session, which lasts up to 30 minutes.” 

Wow looks like I got ripped off. #WHOATHATSWEIRD