Good earplugs protect you from hearing damage and tinnitus. Although, of course, they must be used properly. Here it is important that the earplugs are inserted properly into the ear. Is it actually possible to insert earplugs too deeply into the ear?
Ear plugs too deep in ear
It is not often that an earplug ends up too deep in the ear, but it is possible. With wax balls in particular, it can happen that they are pushed too deep into the ear canal.
Most other types of earplugs will not simply get too deep unless one pushes very hard. With standard earplugs (which fit everyone), however, some may break off and then get too deep into the ear canal. How quickly this happens depends a bit on the quality of the earplug.
Should a piece of earplug ever get stuck in the ear canal, it is always advisable to consult a doctor and not just poke the ear canal yourself. More on this can be found here.
Custom earplugs
With custom-made earplugs, it is virtually impossible to insert them too deeply into the ear. This is because these earplugs are shaped exactly to the user's ear canal, so at some point they cannot go any further. So in normal use, it is not possible to push them too far, or really a lot of pressure must be put on them.
Another way a custom-made earplug can still get too deep into the ear is if a piece of it has broken off. It is therefore not recommended to use a broken or cracked earplug.
Fortunately, the risk of earplugs ending up too deep in the ear is quite small, especially if one uses custom-made earplugs. Using earplugs is not bad for the ear anyway, provided they are used properly. You can read more about this in this article from our knowledge base.