Ever wondered why your ears seem to produce loads of wax while your partner's barely make any? It's not bad luck, and it's definitely not down to hygiene. The real answer sits somewhere between your genes, your anatomy, and what you're putting in (or on) your ears every day.
Here's what the evidence actually says — and if you're in Bristol and need it sorted rather than just explained, our clinics in Kingswood and Bedminster offer professional ear wax removal too.
Earwax, or cerumen, isn't a sign your ears are dirty — it's a self-cleaning agent that protects the ear canal from dust, water and infection. Most of the time it works its way out on its own. Problems only start when it doesn't, and a surprising number of people fall into that category: research puts the number of adults in England and Wales affected by problem wax build-up somewhere between 700,000 and 2 million.
This is the one most people don't know. Whether you produce wet, sticky earwax or dry, flaky earwax comes down to a single gene — ABCC11. One version of the gene (the "G" variant) gives you wet earwax, which tends to be more abundant and prone to building up. The other version ("A") gives you dry earwax, which is far less common in European populations but dominant across East Asia. So if you've always produced more wax than your friends, some of that really is written into your DNA, not your habits.
Some people simply have narrower or more curved ear canals, or more hair inside them, both of which make it harder for wax to migrate out naturally. Clinical guidance on managing ear wax lists anatomical differences and canal hair as recognised risk factors for impaction, alongside skin conditions that affect the ear.
If you wear hearing aids, in-ear headphones, or earplugs regularly, you're mechanically blocking the canal's natural "conveyor belt" process that normally pushes old wax out. Research from the British Journal of General Practice notes that build-up is particularly common in people who use hearing aids or earbud-style earphones, simply because the devices sit in the way and the wax has nowhere to go.
This is the classic one. Using cotton buds (or hairpins, or anything else) to "clean" your ears usually just pushes wax further down the canal, compacting it against the eardrum rather than removing it. It's such a common issue that it's specifically flagged as a risk factor for impaction in clinical management guidance, and NHS-facing research has found that most people trying to remove wax at home with these methods don't succeed — and some end up causing injury. It's exactly the kind of build-up we see regularly at our Kingswood and Bedminster clinics, usually made worse rather than better by a well-meaning cotton bud.
Read more about the bad things that can happen with cotton bud use within our dedicated blog post here!
As we get older, the glands in the ear canal produce drier, less mobile wax, and the natural self-clearing mechanism slows down. This is part of why ear wax problems, and the hearing difficulties that come with them, are disproportionately common in older adults — and why unmanaged wax build-up has been linked to a higher risk of falls in older people.
If wax is only mildly bothersome, softening drops (like olive oil) can help. But if it's affecting your hearing or causing pain, NICE guidance is clear that GP surgeries and community clinics should offer proper removal — not DIY methods. In practice, access varies a lot depending on where you live, so it's worth checking what's available locally rather than reaching for a cotton bud out of frustration.
If you're Bristol-based, our clinics in Kingswood and Bedminster offer ear wax removal appointments if you'd rather leave it to the professionals.
Complete our form to book your appointment through our online portal.
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