Earaches can be anything from slightly painful to extremely painful and are usually brought on by a fluid buildup (sometimes resulting from an infection), or a buildup of pressure in the middle ear.

A highly common cause of the earache is due to plugged ‘Eustachian’ tubes (the tube that comes from the back of your throat and connects to your middle ear). If and when your Eustachian tube becomes blocked, fluid will gather resulting in a painful earache, bringing with it the possibility of bacteria buildup or infection.

Causes of earaches:

• infection of the middle ear
• colds
• allergies
• sinus infections
• buildup of ear wax or fluid
• something stuck in the ear
• teeth problems
• ear injuries
• changes in air pressure in a plane (ascending or descending usually brings this on)

How to prevent earaches:

• Refrain from putting things into your ears such as cotton swabs, bobby pins, your fingers, etc. as this can cause damage to your eardrum and increase your chances of something getting stuck in your ear/eardrum.
• When blowing your nose, do it gently and one nostril at a time.
• Avoid smoke as much as possible. Smoking and secondhand smoke can increase your risk of infection.
• When swimming, wear earplugs and refrain from swimming in dirty waters.