Can swimming water get into my ears?

Swimming is a very healthy sport, and everyone, whether men or women, old or young, can swim. Even some seventy-year-old people can swim in the river, just like a fish, coming and going freely. Swimming brings many benefits to the human body. It not only strengthens the body, but also prevents diseases. So, can swimming water get into your ears?

Does swimming have any effect on your ears?

Swimming has an adverse effect on your ears.

If you stay in the water for too long, the water from the swimming pool will enter your ears, causing swelling and pain in the ear canal. This is called "swimmer's ear", which is an infectious disease of external ear inflammation.

Swimming causes otitis externa

1. The water in the swimming pool is disinfected with chlorine. When this chlorinated water enters the ear, it will destroy the fat protective layer of the external auditory canal. The skin of the ear canal is easily infected by bacteria and fungi, resulting in external ear inflammation.

2. The compounds added to the swimming pool water can easily lead to ear sensitivity or worsen ear inflammation.

3. Furthermore, swimming too frequently allows moisture and water to enter the ear's tympanic cavity, causing the ear canal to remain damp for a long time, causing the tympanic cavity to become a breeding ground for bacteria and fungi, thus leading to inflammation.

As the weather gets hotter, more and more people go to swimming pools to cool off. Some people soak in the water for hours, and when they come out, they are soaked all over, and even their ears get wet. So does swimming have an impact on the ears?

Swimming causes otitis media

When swimming, the head is submerged in water for too long. In addition, the swimming environment is relatively humid. Some people are in the habit of cleaning their ears after swimming. At this time, bacteria and viruses enter the middle ear and produce pus behind the eardrum. Or when swimming when the heat and cold have not healed, bacteria in the nasal cavity enter the middle ear canal, thereby inducing inflammation, causing a feeling of pressure and ear pain.

Symptoms of ear infection and inflammation after swimming

After the ear becomes infected and inflamed, common symptoms include swelling, pain, itching, yellow fluid flowing out of the ear, and hearing loss during the infection. It is difficult to eliminate the root cause of otitis media, and repeated attacks can easily lead to hearing loss.

How to protect your ears when swimming

1. Clean the secretions in the ear canal before swimming to avoid the water soaking the secretions and causing pain and inflammation.

2. You can wear earplugs when swimming to prevent water from entering your ears, which may cause water pressure to damage the eardrum and cause inflammation.

3. If water gets into your ears while swimming, go ashore immediately, tilt your head toward the ear where water gets into the ear, stomp your leg hard in the opposite direction, and pull your earlobe with your hand to let the water in the ear flow out.

4. After swimming, the remaining moisture in the ears can be dried with a hair dryer, but be careful that the hair dryer should be ten centimeters away from the ears and the warm air should be turned on, not the hot air, to avoid burning the ears.

5. Do not use hard objects such as ear picks, fingernails, cotton swabs and other tools to clean your ears, as this can easily cause ear damage and lead to inflammation.