Ear popping on airplanes?

Question

I hate my ears popping on planes!

If you chew gum what does it do does it make it pop faster thanks !

Answer 1

What I find with chewing gum is that it doesn't pop all at once but while you are chewing it, your ears gradually pop over the period of time.

Answer 2

I've had great success with 'Earplanes'.  These are earplugs you twist into your ears about an hour before landing, and they let the pressure equalize slowly...  You can get them at most drugstores.

Answer 3

Your ears pop because of changes in pressure either side of your eardrum.

One side of your eardrum is open directly to the outside - through the hole in your ear... this is where sound waves enter to vibrate your eardrum which makes us hear sounds.

The other side of your eardrum, the "inner" side, is also open to the outside through a long thin tube called the "eustachian tube" which goes to the back of your nose (see http://www.slcent.com/eustachian.html).

It's more difficult for air to reach this inner side of the eardrum via the eustachian tube so sudden changes in air pressure bulge the eardrum in or out until the same pressure reaches the back of the eardrum and evens things out with a "pop". This is normal and is the equalisation of pressure to prevent damage to your eardrums, which could occur if the pressure differential between one side and the other was so great that the eardrum bursts.

Your ears often pop on aircraft because the cabin air pressure is not maintained at the same pressure as sea level but at about the equivalent of 8,000 ft (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cabin_press... So as an aircraft takes off the air pressure changes from that at about sea level to 8,000ft quite rapidly and changes back as the aircraft descends to land.

Similar air pressure changes are experienced on the ground - for example in underground trains which build up pressure in the tunnel as they travel along.

[Incidentally this pressure differential on the eardrums is also why it is a very bad idea to squeeze your nose as you sneeze - the air pressure from the sneeze goes up the eustachian tube and may burst your eardrum].

Chewing gum is a useful way of stopping your ears popping (or at least make them pop sooner and so relieving the pressure) because the eustachian tube runs close to the jaw and its muscles so that chewing "massages" the eustachian tube and opens it up so that air can pass through. The swallowing reflex also has the same effect. You can therefore equalise the pressure by chewing (or pretending to chew just by moving your jaw), sucking a sweet (airlines used to give passengers barley sugar sweets to suck during takeoff for this reason) sipping water or just opening and shutting your mouth a few times.