If you’re reading this, you may have noticed some strange noises in your ears when you’re chewing, talking, or otherwise moving your jaw. We’ve seen these noises described as crackling or fluttering in the ear – and it’s not a fun feeling!
However, there’s a bright side here: It’s very easy to stop that crackling sound in your ears. Quite often, these strange noises are precursors to hearing loss challenges; does the noise come with some difficulty hearing the people around you?
If you’re looking for what causes fluttering in the ear, or how to get rid of the crackling sound entirely, you’re in the right place.
What Causes Fluttering in the Ear?
There are a few different possible causes for the fluttering or crackling noise in your ears.
1. Eustachian Tube Dysfunction
Your Eustachian tubes connect the middle part of your ears to the back of your nose and upper throat. They have a few different functions, including maintaining pressure in your middle ear, draining fluid, and protecting the ears from loud noises or infections.
These tubes can be open or closed; they’re typically closed, and open when you yawn, chew, or swallow. If you’re hearing a crackling noise in your ear when chewing, chances are that your Eustachian tubes are malfunctioning, so they’re not opening or closing properly.
2. Middle Ear Infection
While ear infections in the middle ear are more common in children than adults, ear infections can also cause ear crackling or fluttering due to narrowed or blocked Eustachian tubes. You may also experience ear pain, swelling or inflammation inside your ears, difficulty hearing, or an excess of fluid draining.
3. Buildup of Earwax
An excess of earwax can also cause fluttering in the ear, due to getting stuck and causing a blockage, whether it be from inadvertently pushing it deeper into your ear with a cotton swab or your ears simply producing too much earwax.
Thankfully, this cause has an easy fix: A professional earwax cleaning can remove the blockage very quickly.
3. Tinnitus
Some forms of tinnitus can cause a crackling noise in your ears. Tinnitus, the medical term for that ringing noise in your ears, can be a constant, frustrating noise or a temporary one, but it shouldn’t be ignored. Tinnitus can cause a lot of anxiety and stress to the person dealing with it.
We’re happy to help you determine if tinnitus is the cause of your ear crackling with a tinnitus screening.
How Berkeley Hearing Center Can Help
If the crackling in your ears is starting to affect your daily life, or you’ve noticed some hearing difficulties that coincide with the crackling, it’s time to see an audiologist for more help on the matter.
With the help of a comprehensive hearing assessment, we’ll be able to figure out the cause of the crackling in your ears and take steps to help alleviate it, or refer you to a doctor to get more help.
If you’re curious about hearing care, or would like to talk to a member of our team about your concerns about the crackling in your ears, please feel free to request a callback and we’ll get in touch as soon as we can.
Don’t want to wait? Call our office at 510-841-0681.
