Here's what you need to know about the cause of "popping"—and how to cope.
We've all felt it: A plane descends, pressure inside the cabin changes, and our ears may pop. Normally, a yawn or two should clear any discomfort. But sometimes, as anyone who has flown with a cold knows, the pressure shift can cause real pain.
To understand what's happening, you should first know about your Eustachian tube, a pencil-sized funnel connecting the back of your nose with the middle ear. As your airplane prepares for landing, it ensures air pressure on both sides of the eardrum stays roughly the same. "When you fly, they are changing the pressure around you," Dr. Quinton S. Gopen of Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center tells Condé Nast Traveler. "To keep up, you need to open and close your Eustachian tube, or it will hurt your ear."
Usually, your Eustachian tube handles that job automatically, though you can clear slight discomfort by swallowing or yawning. When you have a cold or bad allergies, the tube gets blocked, keeping it from working properly. At best, it'll hurt. At worst, you may rupture your eardrum or bleed into the space behind it. Both problems should eventually heal, but many doctors recommend not flying with a stuffy nose.
"The worse the cold is, the higher the risk that you end up with an ear problem," Dr. Alicia M. Quesnel, an otologist at Massachusetts Eye and Ear, tells Condé Nast Traveler.Most often, though, avoiding travel is not practical advice. If you must fly, here's what you need to know.
1. YAWN OR TALKThis works well for mild discomfort. "You are opening and closing that tube," Quesnel says. "And when you open and close that tube you are equalizing pressure with the outside world."
2. CHEW GUM OR SUCK ON A CANDYThis approach, recommended by moms everywhere, really does work. "Swallowing activates the muscles that open the Eustachian tube," the American Academy of Otolaryngology says.
3. TAKE MEDICINEBrand names doctors often recommend include Afrin nasal spray and Sudafed. "They are not a cure-all, and you can still have problems," Quesnel says, "but you can optimize your ability to equalize pressure by taking a nasal spray."
4. LIMIT YOUR FLIGHTSIf you must travel with a cold, consider a nonstop, rather than a connection. "It's not the length of time you're flying that matters," Quesnel says. "It's how many times you're going up and down."
5. USE SPECIAL EARPLUGSUCLA's Gopen likes EarPlanes. The company says they naturally filter and regulate air pressure, so your ears should hurt less.
6. GET IMPLANTSSome adults have Eustachian tube dysfunction, and their ears hurt whether or not they're sick. For frequent fliers, doctors can solve this problem by implanting pressure equalization tubes. |
