For most people, the ears are actually self-cleaning. Simply washing the outer ear with soap and water when showering, bathing, or shampooing is usually all that is needed to keep your ears clean.

The presence of ear wax does not mean your ears are dirty. Wax, which is manufactured by specialized glands in the outer part of the ear canals, is a normal component of the ear canals and functions to protect the delicate skin of the ear canals.

The "massage" of the outer ear canal by talking and chewing tends to naturally propel the wax out of the ear canal.

Inserting Q-tips, toothpicks, matchsticks, or bobby pins into the opening of the ear canals is not only unnecessary, it actually pushes wax farther down into the canal and it can be dangerous. These instruments often scrape the delicate skin of the canals causing pain, bleeding, or infection. This can puncture the eardrum or cause more serious injuries to the inner ear, some of which can be permanent.

Those who have normal ears (i.e., no hole in the eardrum or other middle ear disease can usually safely use an over-the-counter earwax softening solution available in any drugstore. These preparations will help to keep the wax soft so it doesn't dry and harden in the ear canal. A few drops of light mineral oil (e.g., baby oil) instilled into the ear canals a couple of times a week makes a handy softener. It's best to avoid "sweet oils" which are vegetable oils, since they form a gummy residue in the ears. You may also want to use a small rubber infant bulb syringe every once in a while to flush the ears gently with warm tap water to remove any excess wax.

People with itchy ears, very small ear canals, or whose wax tends to be very dry and mixed with a lot of dried skin, should have their ears cleaned periodically by a professional skilled in ear care.

Phlegm is actually a combination of saliva and mucus produced naturally by thousands of glands in the nose, sinuses, mouth, and throat. On average, about one quart of mucus is produced every 24-hours by the nose and sinuses.

The amount of saliva produced by glands in the mouth and throat is even greater, depending on how much water we drink, what we eat, and the side effects from medications we're taking. Saliva production stops when we are in the deeper stages of sleep.

Because of the accumulation of phlegm, the average person swallows about once or twice every minute while awake. The accumulation of phlegm in the lower part of the throat is what stimulates us to automatically swallow. This is entirely normal.

Certain things can affect the amount and thickness of this phlegm, and for many people who complain about "too much phlegm," what they're really experiencing is an increase in the stickiness or thickness of this phlegm.

Phlegm tends to become sticky when a person doesn't consume enough water every day (32 to 64 ounces of water per day), if they take medications which tend to dry out their mouth and nose (e.g., antihistamines, tranquilizers for nervousness, medications to help control urinary incontinence, and many other drugs), or if they smoke.

A cold, sinus or throat infection, hay fever, or bronchitis increases the total amount and stickiness of mucus that we produce, thereby making more phlegm. The best way to combat this is to increase the amount of water we drink. Beverages such as coffee, soda, and alcohol do not count, since they do not provide free water which is needed.

The vocal cords are kept wet and lubricated by mucus produced in the voice box, so if the mucus becomes thick and sticky the voice may sound raspy, leading the person to continually clear his/her throat. Besides being annoying, this habit is not good for the voice box. It is better to swallow or to take a sip of water to clear the voice. There is no reason why we should not swallow the phlegm we have in our throat.

A newly recognized cause of increased phlegm in the throat is acid reflux. A person may want to consult their physician to see whether this may be a contributing factor to the problem.