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Lavender Salt Sock (Natural Ear Infection Remedy)

October 19, 2019 by Katie Wells
salt pack ear infection remedy
Table of Contents[Hide][Show]
  • Lavender Salt Ear Infection Remedy+−
    • Here's Why It Works...
  • How to Make a Lavender Salt Ear Infection Remedy
  • Lavender Salt Ear Infection Remedy Recipe

Ear infections are rough, especially for kids who are suffering through one. We recently took a family trip to the beach and all of my children practically lived in the water for a week. I typically bring 3% hydrogen peroxide to use in their ears after swimming in the ocean but forgot it this time in the hustle of getting ready. Using hydrogen peroxide has helped us avoid any ear infections in the past and I foolishly thought we would be ok without it.

A couple of days after we got home, two of our younger children started displaying the classic symptoms of ear infection. I checked to make sure the eardrum had not ruptured and started using garlic oil and my other remedies.

Our daughter was hit with symptoms at 2 AM so I needed to find a quick way to relieve her pain so that we could all get some sleep… and this lavender salt pack did the trick!

Lavender Salt Ear Infection Remedy

This simple remedy combines mineral-rich sea salt (or salt crystals) with lavender flowers for an external hot pack that helps ease the pain of an ear infection. We’ve used basic rice heat packs in the past for body aches and illnesses, but those were in the room with the last of our sleeping children and I wasn’t willing to risk waking them to get one.

Gazing into our salt lamp while I held my crying four-year-old, I wondered if Himalayan salt would work like the rice in a hot pack but with the added benefit of negative ions. I made a quick impromptu hot pack with a cloth muslin bag and some salt crystals and tried it on her ear.

It provided almost instant relief! It also gave the garlic ear oil some time to work without her trying to dump it out.

Here’s Why It Works…

The heat of the salt pack offers relief from the pain. In addition, the salt itself is naturally drying and helps pull fluid out of the ear.

An additional benefit of Himalayan salt is the negative ions it produces when heated. Through a process of attraction and evaporation with water molecules in the air, negative ions have been shown to promote healing and can bind to pollutants and even bacteria.

Finally, lavender has many health benefits and is naturally antibacterial and helps soothe and reduce inflammation. The scent is also calming and helps induce restful sleep.

How to Make a Lavender Salt Ear Infection Remedy

salt pack ear infection remedy
Print
4.6 from 5 votes

Lavender Salt Ear Infection Remedy Recipe

A fast-acting and simple remedy for ear infection pain using common ingredients.
Prep Time5 mins
Yield: 1
Author: Katie Wells

Equipment

  • 1 organic cotton muslin bag, (or a plain white cotton sock)

Materials

  • ½ cup Himalayan salt crystals (or regular coarse ground salt)
  • 2 TBSP dried lavender flowers (or 2-3 drops of lavender essential oil, added after heating)

Instructions

  • Place the salt and lavender flowers in a muslin bag or sock and seal tightly.
  • Carefully, heat the bag in a pan over low heat until warmed or microwave for about 30 seconds.
  • Make sure the pack is warm to the touch but not hot enough to burn and place over the painful ear.
  • Warm and repeat as needed for relief of ear infection pain.

Notes

Caution: While this remedy will help draw moisture out of the ear and provide relief through heat, it is not a complete remedy for an ear infection. Consider using other remedies and check with a doctor if you suspect the infection is serious. Signs of infection and/or rupture include a very high fever and/or fluid coming from the ear.
Equipment Note: These are the muslin bags that I like. Also, while regular coarse ground salt will work fine, the Himalayan salt crystals seem to hold heat better and don't contain as much salt dust.

This article was medically reviewed by Dr. Ann Shippy, who is Board Certified in Internal Medicine and a certified Functional Medicine physician with a thriving practice in Austin, Texas. As always, this is not personal medical advice and we recommend that you talk with your doctor.

What do you use for ear infections?

Sources:

  1. Digel I, Temiz Artmann A, Nishikawa K, Cook M, Kurulgan E and Artmann GM. Bactericidal effects of plasma-generated cluster ions. Med. Biol. Eng. Comput., 2005; 43: 800-807.
  2. Marin V, Moretti G and Rossu M. Effects of ionizations of air on some bacterial strains. Ann. Ig. 1989; 1: 491-500.
  3. López V, Nielsen B, Solas M, Ramírez MJ, Jäger AK. Exploring Pharmacological Mechanisms of Lavender (Lavandula angustifolia) Essential Oil on Central Nervous System Targets. Front Pharmacol. 2017;8:280. Published 2017 May 19. doi:10.3389/fphar.2017.00280

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Category: Natural Remedies

About Katie Wells

Katie Wells, CTNC, MCHC, Founder and CEO of Wellness Mama and Co-Founder of Wellnesse, has a background in research, journalism, and nutrition. As a wife and mom of six, she turned to research and took health into her own hands to find answers to her health problems. WellnessMama.com is the culmination of her thousands of hours of research and all posts are medically reviewed and verified by the Wellness Mama research team. Katie is also the author of the bestselling books The Wellness Mama Cookbook and The Wellness Mama 5-Step Lifestyle Detox.

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Reader Interactions

Discussion (32 Comments)

  1. Adam

    September 4, 2015 at 10:42 PM

    Thanks for all your info! How do you check/know if an eardrum has ruptured?

    Reply
    • Wellness Mama

      September 8, 2015 at 5:06 PM

      I use an otoscope I purchased online.

      Reply
  2. Gowri Muthur

    September 4, 2015 at 3:42 PM

    Wellness Mama, i think it would be helpful for all mommies if you could include any salt would be better to draw water from the ear. Not everyone have pink Himalayan salt around in the kitchen. This remedy always worked and don’t want others reading the post to think that only pink salt can be used. Using Pink salt would be great but everyone have salt in the kitchen in case of midnight emergencies.
    Btw… loving your recommendation of the Salt lamp. We have been using it for a month in the bedroom and i am sleeping much better and waking up very refreshed.

    Reply
  3. Tanya

    September 3, 2015 at 9:15 PM

    What is the ear drum ruptures? Is there a way to help that with natural remedy?

    Reply
    • Wellness Mama

      September 3, 2015 at 9:23 PM

      I’d definitely see a doc to make sure the eardrum is healing ok and make sure there are no other problems and ask before using this, but I’d personally feel ok using this after making sure the ear was ok since it would help draw out moisture.

      Reply
  4. Sue

    September 3, 2015 at 7:46 PM

    I’m really enjoying your blog, and am trying different items that you mentioned. It seems though that your search engine isn’t working, so it’s difficult to find certain things. Thanks!

    Reply
    • Wellness Mama

      September 3, 2015 at 8:54 PM

      The search function no longer requires you to hit “enter” after putting in your search term. It should just populate results as a drop-down menu in the search field.

      Reply
  5. Vicky

    September 3, 2015 at 7:26 PM

    This sounds great! One question though… how can you tell whether or not the ear drum has ruptured?

    Reply
    • Wellness Mama

      September 3, 2015 at 8:47 PM

      I have an otoscope that I got online.

      Reply
      • Sarah B

        September 6, 2015 at 5:04 PM

        Hi Katie, I have been wanting to get one of these – do you like the one you use? Could you recommend the brand?
        Thanks
        Sarah

        Reply
        • Alex

          May 14, 2016 at 3:57 AM

          Yes, I know you!

          Reply
  6. Zainab Yisrael

    September 3, 2015 at 5:54 PM

    Wonderful information. I just had an ear infection. I will remember this if it ever happens again. Wellness Mama, you mentioned that the salt draws out moisture. I have been suffering from puffy eyes every morning. I sleep with my head elevated because if not, it will be even more severe. The problem is the swelling really doesn’t go down that much as the day goes on. I believe it started due to straining my eyes and I have been dealing with this for ever since, for years. Is there anything that I can do to alleviate puffy eyes? Thanks to anyone who can help me with this problem as it is causing my eyes to really become droopy.

    Reply
    • Gowri Muthur

      September 4, 2015 at 3:34 PM

      For puffy eyes, i haven’t tried it personally. But have seen this as a remedy. Take one piece of ice then rub it around the eyes for a few min, then immediately run warm water in the sink and splash water on the eyes . It is mainly alternating cold and hot temperature to the nerves and muscles around the eyes. you can also alternate with cold and hot compress. Hope this helps.

      For tired eyes after working on computer all day, I use a hot wash cloth and leave with over my eyes for 10 minutes. This really provides great relief.

      Reply
    • Lola George

      December 18, 2015 at 11:25 PM

      Preparation H cream helps with puffy eyes. Takes away swelling and tightens the skin

      Reply
    • Lacey Miller

      March 12, 2016 at 4:14 PM

      I have not personally used this remedy, but I have heard that cold tea bags over the eyes can really help.

      Reply
    • Traudl Wöhlke

      October 20, 2019 at 1:48 PM

      Homeopathy really works well and fast. Kalium carbonicum is the remedy for puffy eyes, and Hepar sulfuris 30C often helps with ear infections.

      Reply
  7. elizabeth

    September 3, 2015 at 5:18 PM

    I used raw onion juice for years.natural antibiotic and apparent pain killer…grate and squeeze sm onion in muslin bag or small sieve to get juice only. Soak cotton ball and apply droplets to ear and have patient stay still so it will get where it needs to go..or .use a dropper for easier application/delivery…kills pain within 15 min..reapply as needed.

    Reply
  8. Catherine Lamb

    September 3, 2015 at 2:45 PM

    Interesting! Thankfully we’ve only dealt with one minor ear infection in 4 years and the garlic oil did the trick!

    Reply
  9. Fiona

    September 3, 2015 at 1:59 PM

    Wow….wish I had been that good a mom when mine were little. Amazing that you know so much.

    Reply
  10. Kathy

    September 3, 2015 at 1:58 PM

    does this work for both swimmers ear and a true ear infection?

    Reply
    • Debbie Jones

      February 15, 2016 at 7:36 AM

      Just a note: my sister worked for an Ear Nose & Throat Dr, and he recommended a solution of 50% distilled white vineagar & 50% rubbing alcohol to rinse out ears after swimming. Alcohol evaporates out the water & vinegar restores PH to the ears, to counteract the acidity of the chlorine. Use a clean eye dropper & while child lies on their side, put one or two drops in each ear. Then let it run out on a clean towel.

      Reply
      • Beth

        March 14, 2016 at 9:04 AM

        Eons ago, my pediatrician recommended a similar solution (different proportions), after he treated me for a bout of swimmer’s ear. I have used this every time after swimming or a “vigorous” shower and have NEVER had problems since then. I heartily recommend this approach. Interestingly, my DH’s ENT doctor completely dismissed the idea (DH had a different problem), which DH completely dismissed. We use this solution with our DC and feel it effective.

        Reply
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