10 Natural Earache Relief Methods That Really Work
This post may contain affiliate links from which I will earn a commission. Learn more in our disclosure.
Earaches and ear infections can have a number of causes, but no matter the cause, they are no fun! Here are some ideas for natural earache remedies using things you might have around the home, and they really work!
In this post, we'll talk about some ways to help with earaches while you are trying to determine the cause, and we'll also address the possible overuse of antibiotics in the case of ear infections.
Antibiotic Use and Ear Infections
Did you know that antibiotics aren’t typically necessary for ear infections and that overuse of antibiotics for ear infections can cause long-lasting health problems including gut dysbiosis and antibiotic resistance?
It's a common misperception that an infection means that one must use an antibiotic. In the case of an ear infection, that is definitely not the case. In fact, according to the CDC, for most ear infections, antibiotics are not recommended. Overuse of antibiotics for children’s ear infections can end up causing gut microbial imbalance and even antibiotic resistance.
What's more, ear infections are often over-diagnosed and of course, viral ear infections won't respond to antibiotics.
For these reasons, it's important to know how to address ear infections at home to avoid unnecessary exposure to antibiotics and the problems that can arise from their overuse.
I try to avoid antibiotics as much as possible, for those same reasons. We try to use saline washes, essential oils, probiotics, and other natural methods of addressing issues before turning to OTC and prescription medications.
Ear Infection Symptoms
Following are some symptoms of an ear infection.
- feeling of fullness in the ear
- fever
- pain in ear
- sore throat
- feeling sick
- lacking energy
- difficulty hearing
- discharge from ear
- feeling of pressure or fullness in ear
- itching and/or irritation in or around the ear
When to Seek Medical Care
If any of the following occur, do seek attention from your healthcare provider:
- Symptoms last for more than a day
- Ear pain is severe
- Your infant or toddler is sleepless or irritable after a cold or other upper respiratory infection
- You observe a discharge of fluid, pus, or bloody discharge from the ear
Additionally, an adult with ear pain or discharge should see a doctor as soon as possible.
Natural Remedies for Earache / Ear Infection
Following are some natural helps for ear infections and earaches. You likely have some of these in your home already or they can be purchased at health food stores or online holistic sites.
1. Vitamin C
Personally I like sodium ascorbate but camu camu is a new one that we love; its natural vitamin C power in a whole food form. Or try this Homemade Vitamin C! Vitamin C supports the immune system so it's great to use when the body is fighting something. Homemade Vitamin C is
2. Saline Wash
Saline washes are known to help remove the germs from the nasal passages and the back of the throat to reduce viral load.
3. Garlic Oil
Garlic is well known to help with immune support and has antimicrobial and antiviral properties. And, according to many parents, garlic oil is a great home remedy for ear infections. One to two drops in the ear is often recommended, however, this is not recommended if there is suspicion of a burst or ruptured ear drum.
4. Probiotics
Probiotics help support the body's immune system and also are thought to help with preventing ear infections in the first place.
You can get probiotics in the form of a supplement or fermented foods and drinks like sauerkraut, kimchi, kefir, and kombucha. In fact, ferments are known to be exponentially more potent than probiotic supplements, so they are often a better choice unless one is dealing with histamine intolerance. In that case, a low-histamine probiotic is a good option.
5. Mullein
Mullein (Verbascum thapsus) oil is well-known as a natural earache remedy. It's also known to be an expectorant. You can easily find mullein tinctures online or in health food stores.
Research published in The Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine demonstrates how an herbal ear drop containing mullein was just as effective for pain relief as an anesthetic one. Mullein oil is also used to naturally treat ear infections (and more) in dogs too!
6. Breast Milk
Breast milk is full of natural antibodies and is known to have many benefits for a baby's health. Breastfeeding has also been shown to reduce the number of ear infections in babies and in children who were breastfed as babies.
There is conflicting information about putting breastmilk directly in the ear canal. Some say that you can put it in the outer ear canal, whereas others say that putting a few drops in the ear canal has brought relief. Both of those claims lean on the claim that each drop of breast milk has over one million white blood cells.
7. Hydrogen Peroxide
Many sources recommend putting a few drops of hydrogen peroxide in the ear and then letting it bubble for a few minutes before draining it out. I personally never got much benefit from this, but have heard of others who have. It's important to not put peroxide or any other liquid in the car if you suspect a perforated ear drum. Also, if you have a cut in your ear, peroxide should not be used as it can be damaging to injured tissues.
8. Vitamin D
It's a good idea to take vitamin K2 with Vitamin D for it to work better.
9. Warm Compress
While warmth isn't going to cure an ear infection, it can help relieve the pain and inflammation so you can get the rest you need. To make a warm compress, wet a clean small towel with warm water, wring it out well, and then hold it against the infected ear. Some people like to alternate warm compresses with cold compresses to help address the inflammation better. You can use a cloth soaked in cold or ice-cold water and then wrung out, or an ice pack can also be used. A heating pad can be used instead of a warm compress.
10. Apple Cider Vinegar
Yes, most of us use apple cider vinegar for cooking (like in salad dressings) or for personal care (like in this hair rinse), but ACV apparently can also be used for ear infections. But you do need to be careful when trying this. The reason why this can help is that apple cider vinegar has proven antibacterial and antifungal properties.
To use apple cider vinegar for an ear infection or earache, dilute the vinegar with equal parts of warm water or isopropyl alcohol, and place 5-10 drops in the affected ear. Tilt the head (lying down with the affected ear up works well) so the mixture doesn't run out and leave for a few minutes before letting it drain out onto a cloth. Repeat throughout the day.
We have tried many of the above remedies with varying amounts of relief. To my recollection, we have never had to use antibiotics once for an ear infection or earache for our kids. Natural methods have worked well for us, thankfully!
More Natural Health Topics:
- Eczema and Food Allergies — From Despair to Healing
- Natural Sleep Help for Kids And Adults
- Andrea Fabry's Mold Story — What she learned just might save your life.
What natural ear infection remedies have you used?
we had great experience with lobelia extract , for ear ache, stomach pain, and tooth ache.but definitely will try it if needed. thank’s for sharing.
Oh interesting. I have never tried that. Thanks for sharing! Do you just take it internally?
Wow! Kinda wish I knew this before I lost my hearing! Maybe this could have stopped my eardrum from breaking and loosing my hearing! I will definitely remember for my future family
Oh no. So sorry that happened to you!
Sorry, I have a new phone and it auto corrects like crazy. I meant I bought my colloidal silver set up from her. I haven’t done her kidney cleanse. I do use her bowl cleanse periodically. My mom always liked silver for mosquito bites. When my son had earlier infection it was the only thing that also helped with pain.
Ear not earlier.
Colloidal silver works immediately for the pain and kills it in a couple of days. It literally smothers bacteria and viruses. It reduces inflammation fast. Any place on your body it can TOUCH for 5 minutes or longer it works on. It is great for urinary tract infections as well.
Hi there. I’ve tried it on and off and never had much success. Glad you did, however.
I have going that colloidal silver to be very reliant on the brand. I just make my own.
I’ve heard that’s dangerous – you feel OK doing that?
You do drink it for urinary infections. But for sore throats we spit it out. I have heard there are dangers in buying a bad form but honestly, I’ve been making my own since 2000. I bought my dry up from Dr Hilda Clark because my son had a lot of ear infections. It has worked awesome for 16yes and I still have plenty of silver rod left. But yes,do be careful. I just researched and decided to trust her company. I have bought silver on vacation. It didn’t work so well. I don’t remember the brand. Caution is always good. I just try to do my homework.
Thanks. What is a dry up? Interesting you mention her. I am working on her kidney cleanse.
Love Hulda Clark!
Interesting! What have you done that she has recommended. I just started the Kidney Cleanse again- I never finished it last time.
I make my own colloidal silver too. I followed the instructions from healthwyze.org, made it from silver bullion bars and I can control the strength of it (by diluting with more distilled water). My kids have never gotten ear infections amazingly enough (they are 8 & 11, have a history of autoimmune issues, we avoid sugar for the most part, except fruit). But colloidal silver is GREAT for sore throats at the onset of colds; with silver around, they hardly get sick at all, maybe 1-2X a year and never longer than a week.
I had terrible ear infections as a child. Dr.s were advising surgery, my mother balked and suddenly as a pre-teen they stopped. Age 60 I started having acute sinusitis, antibiotics to stop the pain. Allergy testing showed I was VERY allergic to Dairy! I had started drinking kefir for health… Someone had mentioned milk allergy as causing chronic ear infections to my mother years ago, which the doctors had dismissed. As a preteen I stopped drinking milk until later in life when trouble started again with kefir. You can test for milk allergy yourself by eliminating ALL forms of dairy for at least 3 weeks, then reintroduce into the diet.
Great tip – thanks!
Hello, thanks for sharing this great information! When you say the basil oil is in a carrier oil, how many drops of basil oil do you put in how much carrier oil? Thanks again.
There are a lot of dilution guidelines online. I hope to put something together soon. However, one I have seen is 1-2 drops in 1/2 tsp of carrier oil. I don’t recommend using oils neat, except possibly lavender.
Thanks Adrienne!
But urine is not sterile. That’s a myth. It could cause an infection.
I addressed that in the post. Thanks! It is sterile when leaving the body…I recommended using an antibacterial wipe.
I use garlic with mullin oil from a bottle with a dropper, and it works. Garlic has no side effects, unless you are diabetic or have high blood pressure. It healed my son’s ear infection 10 years ago.
Yes, it can work really well, but another concern is of course if someone has an allergy.
Thank you for sharing. Sure wish I had known about this when my kids were, well …kids! I just wanted to share our own experiences with a natural way to conquer the pesky bugs like flu and such. Elderberry! You can find in tablets for adults and older kids and in syrup for smaller children. I know you will research it yourself, so I will stop trying to convince, but at my house, this is my go to and it hasn’t let us down yet in the seven years we’ve been using it! We start taking it when we know we have been exposed and continue a daily dose to enhance our immune system.
I have elderberries. Need to get something made with them. Thanks for the reminder. Have you seen this post? https://wholenewmom.com/recipes/keep-germs-at-bay-with-delicious-immune-boosting-jam/
I did use urine in my son’s ear when he was 3, he is now 11 and has not had a ear infection since then! I just got tired of him being on antibiotics that I finally tried it and it worked. I already knew about it but thought that don’t sounds very appealing and wasn’t sure how much to put in or for how long so I did 2 drops I’m each ear morning and night for 2 days. At the time I was glad I tried it and now I tell everyone who’s kids are sick. I sometimes think they don’t believe me or that it’s gross would want to do it.
Wow – thanks for sharing!
But what about that stitch of pee in your ear