The comments below reflect the personal experiences and opinions of readers and do not represent medical advice or the views of this website. The information shared has not been evaluated by the FDA and is not intended to diagnose, treat, or prevent any disease or health condition. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional for medical concerns.
Aloe
Posted by Dana (Boston, Ma) on 05/14/2009
★★★★★
My kid got very bad ear ache one night, I didn't know what caused it or what to do. I have aloe vera plant at home for minor burns and such, so I cut it and squeezed some clear liquid and warm it just enough so it's not cold and put 3-4 drops of it into the ear and closed with cotton ball Very soon she fell asleep, next day like nothing happened. We didn't take her to a doctor, because she was fine and never again had any problems, so I don't know what caused the pain. Whatever it was aloe vera helped.
Avoid Dairy
Posted by Marian (Tulsa, Ok) on 05/01/2011
★★★★★
Thanks Earth Clinic and readers for all your wonderful advice!!!
When one of my sons was about 8 years old, he kept getting ear infections accompanied by fatigue and exhaustion. I eventually consulted a naturopath after the ear nose and throat specialist couldn't help. He noted that when an infection recurs, it often signals an underlying allergy. Sure enough it turned out that he was severely allergic to dairy of any kind. It was quite a shock to discover that dairy products are contained in a mulititude of foods including hot dogs, buns, waffles, you name it. I had to learn to read the ingredient list carefully. As long as he stayed away from dairy, he was perfectly fine, back to his old self. What an incredible relief!!
Cod Liver Oil
Posted by Sharon (Wesley Chapel, Fl) on 06/16/2010
★★★★★
Cod-liver oil dose is determined by the baby's age. 1 mo to 6 months use 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon in a dropper so it will slide down the side of their tongue and not choke them, as they are not used to the thickness of the oil. 6 mo to 1 yr, 1/2 to 1 teaspoon daily. my 2 yr-olds could usually take the capsules. Sometimes they chewed them. Keep in mind, when you have a chronic condition, it may take up to 3 months to see great improvement as it takes the body awhile to clear up the damage already present. However, my mom had told me about this when my firstborn had had 5 trips to the doc with earache, and after starting the cod liver drops for him and the other 3 children who came after, I never-ever again had another childs earache to keep me up all night, or any- and I mean any issues with ears, nose or throat. As an addendum, you want to remember, that Any sugar containing products will slow the process considerably, as just 1 tsp of sugar will cause your immune system to shut down for 24 hours. Please use real fruit juice or a little honey, those popsicles help keep the docs in business. Hugs to all. Sharon
Cod Liver Oil
Posted by Tammy (Haledon, NJ) on 10/06/2006
★★★★★
This wasn't on your site but I am a true believer in this, my son at 3 months of age suffered from constant ear infections. Once I gave him a dose of cod liver oil a day he hasn't had one since!!!! Also I believe the omega 3 fatty acids in cod liver oil pretty much made my kid way advanced in brain function. He is just 2 years old and can count to 30, knows all of his shapes and colors ta boot! Plus he originally had eczema and constipation and the oil cleared all of that up too!!
Replied by Rose
(Harrisburg, Pennsylvania)
03/07/2007
Replied by Luvdplanet
(Gainesville, Fl)
09/11/2013
Garlic
Posted by Kenneth (Florida) on 05/23/2022
★★★★★
EARACHE NOT CAUSED BY PHYSICAL TRAUMA
1) Take a clove of garlic, lay a large knife flat on top of it and push down hard with the palm of your hand on top of the knife. 2) Slide the solid part of the garlic to the side. 3) Put 10 drops of vegetable, olive or coconut oil (the one that smells like coconut) on top of garlic oil left on the counter and mop up all the oils you can with a cotton ball. 4) The cotton ball should have enough combined oils to squeeze out 4 drops in the infected ear, with the head turned sideways. Then gently push the cotton ball in the ear canal.
Notes -
A) Most ear infections start with moisture behind the ear's protective wax.
B) The oil melts the wax and the garlic oil attacks the infection.
C) The cotton ball soaked with oil blocks the oxygen from getting to the infection.
D) The pain should be immediately greatly reduced and the next day the cotton ball can be removed and the infection is usually gone (If not repeat again).
E) make the cotton ball big enough so that not all of it will fit inside the ear canal for easy removal.
F) Early detection is best, so a slight tug on the ear lobe will tell you right away if you or your child needs this treatment.
Garlic
Posted by George (Pittsburgh ) on 03/05/2017
★★★★★
Ear infection in child: I warmed up a slice of fresh garlic and put 3 drops in his ear twice, 6 hours apart. At bedtime, I put 1 slice of garlic in his outer ear wrapped in a small piece of paper towel which I moistened with olive oil. I put a piece of cotton ball on top of this and secured his ear with gauze to keep it in his ear overnight. I gave him alternating doses of children's motrin and Tylenol every 6 hours as needed to control the fever.
By morning, the ear pain was gone. Mind you, this was after trying over the counter ear drops for ear infection for one day with no results. Also, we have taken our child to the doctor previoysly during this allergy season for previous ear infections and we know that there are not any other issues going on with our son's ears.
Thank you Earth clinic community! This was really helpful.
Garlic
Posted by Provident Mom (Lake Jackson, Texas) on 02/25/2012
★★★★★
Wow! This works fantastic! A crushed clove of garlic mixed with some olive oil and stirred together. Then sifted out any garlic pieces. Used it on my kids and myself- huge improvement!!!
Garlic
Posted by Karen (Cooroy, Qld Australia) on 12/18/2011
★★★★★
I just tried a clove of garlic (chopped into 4 pieces) warmed in some coconut oil and then a few drops of this placed in my daughters ear with a q-tip. She has had the flu for three days and had an earache since last night. We tried hot rock salt for the pain, which helped only a little bit. The garlic in oil worked within 5 minutes! Her ear is not echoing or hurting anymore. Hurray for this site!! Thanks to all who post their findings on here.
Garlic
Posted by Karen (Sealrock, Oregon) on 11/08/2010
★★★★★
A capsule of garlic can be punctured & the juice inside of it squirted into the ear (people or animals)then put a large ball cotton in ear to keep juice inside & provide warmth. - there are immediate results. Even with infants immediate results - no more crying & pulling at the ears & no more infection after 1 to 2 times of dosing.
Garlic
Posted by Patti (Nowhere, AZ) on 06/15/2009
★★★★★
This is for all the mothers out there that have a child with an earache. Get one garlic clove crush it in a garlic press mix it with one tablespoon olive oil then gently warm the two ingredients together in a small pan. Next use a Qtip to drop three drops into ear then cover with a cottonball. Apply 2 times a day. My kids want me to add that it takes about 10 minutes for pain to subside.
Garlic
Posted by Tara (Marlborough, MA USA) on 01/07/2009
★★★★★
I saw comments about garlic oil working for ear infections. A few weeks ago, my 4 yr old son was very lethargic and his ear was bright red and burning. He said it hurt. My husband chopped up one clove of fresh garlic, put it in maybe a couple table spoons of olive oil in a small cup and warmed it up in the microwave. He strained the garlic out, let it cool and put a dropperful in my son's affected ear. I gave my son some painkiller and a cold compress and he fell asleep for the night. By morning, he was fine!
Garlic
Posted by Robin (Ladera Ranch, CA) on 07/22/2008
★★★★★
I was told if my son was breastfed he would have a stronger immune system. Now I wonder what time of immune system he would of had if I didn't breastfeed him! He had constant ear infections from the time he was 4 months old until about 6 years old. He was on numerous bouts of antibiotics, sometimes both ears twice a month!!! I spent soooo much money on doctors appts and antibiotic prescriptions. His immune system got worse from what I think are the vast amounts of antibiotics. Finally, a guy at work told me to go to this natural store. I went and a man came out and sold me a bottle of ear oil (mostly garlic oil with a couple of other things) for 2 dollars. I brought it home, tried it when my son had an infection and I was BLOWN AWAY!!! About 2 days worth and it was gone. What's amazing is, it came back once or twice after that for about the first year and he hasn't had one since. I wish someone would have told me sooner!!!! Yeah he smelled like garlic and he was mad about that but no more expensive trips to the doctor and these crazy amounts of antibiotics. I've seen these bottles of ear oil since then and given them to my friends with kids and they said it worked for them too and they were amazed. The sell them at like whole foods and trader joes. Doesn't hurt to try right?
Garlic
Posted by Rita (Markham, Canada) on 05/11/2008
★★★★★
My four year old had a severe ear ache after a year of having ear aches every few weeks. I was tired of giving her antibiotics, therefore this time I wanted to find out a natural way to cure this pain. I tried the garlic cure and it worked. Although she did complain about the burning in her ear and she wanted me to clean it out, she ended up falling asleep and slept through the rest of the night. When she woke up she did not have an ear ache any longer. Whereas before putting the squeezed drops of garlic into her ear, she would dose off for a bit but then the pain would wake her up and she could not fall asleep. The crushed garlic juice in her ear really worked.
Garlic and Hydrogen Peroxide, Alcohol
Posted by Holly (O'fallon, Mo) on 06/03/2011
★★★★★
This works! I have five kids and have dealt with numerous earaches. Chop one tooth of the garlic clove and place on a cotton ball or pad. Wrap cotton around garlic and set in a bowl. Pour peroxide or rubbing alcohol over cotton ball and let sit for a minute or two. Drop 3 or 4 drops into ear and let sit for 2 minutes. Place a dry cotton ball in ear and tilt head or lay down (on the earache side) and let drain. If using peroxide wait until bubbling stops (a few minutes). Peroxide will clean out any wax or build up in the ear. Alcohol seems to evaporate quickly and aids in draining. (But chose one ore the other, not both at the same time! )
My mom always used a washcloth filled with warm salt as pain relief for earaches. Warm 1/4 cup table salt in pan on low heat until salt is warm to the touch. Pour into center of washcloth. Bring sides of washcloth up and wrap a rubber band just above pile of salt. Place on ear until it cools(it usually lasts about 15/20 min). This heat brings great relief and is safer/easier than a heating pad (great for middle of the night! ) Be careful not to get salt too hot, it can burn the thin skin around your ear.
Garlic or Mullein Oil
Posted by Lanayanie (Santa Rosa Beach, FL) on 06/10/2009
★★★★★
When my son was 4, he had a recurring ear infection. Antibiotics did not help, and I was very frustrated. It seemed like a vicious cycle. Finally, I stopped taking him to a doctor (and stopped the antibiotic round). Instead, I would put a small piece of cotton ball dipped into garlic oil or mullein oil into his ear before bed time. Both are supposed to work well for this. (Mullein is an old native-American remedy for ear ache.) I also gave him high doses of vitamin C, garlic, echinacea, and golden seal (in liquid) mixed with his juice several times a day. Once he recovered, the problem did not come back.
