Cotton buds should not be used to clean ears, health officials say.
Inserting a bud could damage the ear canal and eardrum and push wax further down, according to the health watchdog.
The draft guidance from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) also says that ear syringing, in which a large metal syringe is used to pump water manually into the ear to clear out wax, is potentially harmful and should no longer be used.
