If you’ve had ear infection at any point in your life, you know how unpleasant it can be, especially if you’ve to take care of your infant/children and manage your own frustrations! As a parent, who has experienced earaches as a child and occasionally in my adulthood, I sympathize with you.
What Is An Ear Infection?
An ear infection, most commonly occurring in the middle ear, is usually caused by either bacteria or viruses. Middle ear infections or otitis media are characterized by infection and swelling. These infections can be quite painful due to fluid accumulation and inflammation.
I’d like to share a few tips on how to care for ear infections naturally.
Home Remedies To Cure An Ear Infection Naturally
For infants, once the presence of an ear infection is established – redness, heat penetrating from the ear, tugging at the ear, possibly followed by fever and restlessness – homeopathic preparations may be your saving grace.
1. Using Homeopathy
When using homeopathic preparations, it’s best to find the remedy most suited for the present condition. There are some great guide books and starter kits to introduce you to the most commonly used homeopathics. The following remedies are recommended for ear infections with these symptoms:
- Aconite: rapid onset after exposure to chill or sudden changes in temperature
- Allium Cepa: cold symptoms along with earache, burning discharge from nose, watery eyes, and sore throat
- Apis: sticking, burning, pricking pain; external ear may be read and tender hot dry skin, alternating perspiration; symptoms that worsen with heat
- Belladonna: rapid onset; face dry and flushed; hot head; dry skin; burning dilated pupils and eardrum; reddish ear canal; pain comes and goes suddenly
- Calcrea Carbonica: Throbbing pain; may have thick, yellow, offensive discharge sensitive to cold and preferring cold drinks; usually fair-skinned with poor muscle tone; head hot, sweaty, and smelly
- Capsicum: burning, stinging pain in the ears; swelling and pain behind the ears; cannot bear to have the ear touched; feel chilly with a headache
- Chamomilla: earache after exposure to cold and tearing, stabbing pain in waves
- Ferum Phosphoricum: slow onset, ear is dark red, usually left-sided, slightly elevated temperature, and eardrum is red and bulging
- Hepar Sulpuris: throbbing, splinter-like pain and deafness, itching and redness, need for warmth, and hypersensitivity to everything
- Lachesis: left-sided pain, may move to the right; usually has a sore throat, pains with every swallow; may have hard wax; worse in the night and with warmth
- Lycopodium: right-sided pain or starts right and moves left; ringing and buzzing; discharge is thick, yellow, and burns; worse from 4–8 pm; tendency toward digestive upsets; anxious and insecure, always wanting someone around
- Magnesium Phosphoricum: spasmodic and localized pains and worse in cold, needs better pressure and warm applications
- Mercurius: tearing, shooting, pinching, pressing and burning pains and recurring deafness with tonsil problems.
- Pulsatilla: earache may develop after a cold; stopped from getting wet or chilled; ears swollen, red, and hot; itching deep in the ear; jerking, tearing pain; and greenish pus
2. Herbal Remedies
A herbal combination of the following plants may provide a healthier environment that weakens bacteria and viruses as well as stimulate circulation to promote healing. Elimination of toxins helps to alleviate pain while reducing inflammation and swelling.
- Black walnut
- Bugleweed
- Goldenseal
- Plantain
- Fenugreek and thyme
These help clear mucous. The dried herbs can be steeped in hot water or taken in capsule form.
3. Diet And Nutrition
- Bifidophilus can be added to food or breastmilk/formula or taken in capsule, for teens and adults.
- Colostrum accelerates healing and supports the immune system.
- Foods that aggravate the symptoms are dairy, wheat, corn, peanut butter, pasteurized orange juice, and processed sugars.
4. Bodywork And Home Treatments
Internal Ear Drop
- 1 capsule garlic oil (DIY)
- 1 tsp olive oil
- 4 drops tea tree oil (quality essential oil)
- 1 capsule mullein, for pain
It may be worth looking into some preventive measures with the application of the lymphatic drainage technique – this may help provide relief from the build-up of cellular debris. Also, be sure to keep your ears dry while bathing.
Consult a qualified massage or bodywork therapists.
5. A Few Natural Remedies
They say you typically have everything you need when you need it the most.
- Use ingredients like fresh garlic, onions, and thyme. You can start with the basics and expand your natural remedy kit from there.
- Clove essential oil provided relief from the last earache I experienced over the winter. The throbbing was reduced by the natural analgesic properties while the warming sensation and self-massage were soothing.
I usually only recommend things I’ve tried or experienced. Here goes one such home remedy:
- Baked onion is a folk remedy used to provide relief from ear pain.
- After baking a large onion, while it is still hot (not burning), place over the ear.
- Use the juice as ear drops.
If you’ve used this remedy or intend to give it a try after reading this article, please feel free to share any feedback; it is encouraged and greatly appreciated!
Note: Consult your natural health care provider for the correct dosage. The information given here is not intended to diagnose, treat, or cure the disease; it is rather a means to create an environment where the body can do what it needs to allow self-healing. When caring for a ear infection, make sure you treat both ears as the infection can travel from one side to the other.
6. Supplement
It’s worth looking into the effectiveness of colloidal silver as it provides a broad spectrum of immune support. It can be taken internally or used as ear drops.
The cell salt that rules the health of ears, neck, and shoulders is natrum sulfuricum or sodium sulfur. Consuming foods high in these minerals or taking the cell salt (diluted form) may help the body to build, cleanse, and repair the tissues, providing overall cellular support and enhanced function for even the whole body.