In this episode of Let's Dive In, RTÉjr Radio's science show, Julie and Phil speak to two audiologists to find out what earwax is, what its for, and whether your ears sneeze in order to get it out!
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Have you ever had a good look at your earwax? Do you know what it's for? Or where it’s made? Or even what it tastes like??
Well, in this episode of Let’s Dive In, Phil and I had the chance to find out. Yes. You read that right: we taste our own earwax.
So, thanks to 7-year old Hannah for the question for this show: Is earwax the same as snot, but in your ears?
To help us answer this question, we’ve got two audiologists from Australia. Stace Rule and Pete Duncan. They work together at an audiologist clinic in a town called Darwin, which is in the northern part of Australia.
So, is earwax like snot? "It is, in a way," says Pete, "because it is a protective way of stopping bacteria, and other things you don’t want staying in your ears, helping move it out. It acts as a filter."
And how does it get out?
Well, according to Stace, the cells in the ear migrate. "If you put a dot in the centre of your eardrum, over time you can actually watch and track that dot make its way out because the cells move out. And then they replace themselves. So that’s how the wax gets moved out."
IMPORTANT!!! Do not try this at home! Only audiologists and other ear professionals should be drawing on eardrums.
But an experiment we do want you to try at home: we want you to get familiar with your earwax!
What you’ll need:
- Your fingernail.
- Your ear.
- Your earwax.
- Your eyes, nose and tongue.
What you need to do:
- Gently scrape out a little of your earwax from your outer ear using your finger nail.
- Look at it, smell it, and, if you’re feeling brave, taste it!
Bon apetite!
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AND read all the Let's Dive In articles with experiments to try at home HERE!
