Home Treatment for an Ear Infection

Ear infections affect not only children, but also teens and adults. It is frustrating to experience a clogged or painful ear, or to find you cannot hear properly due to an infection. Ear infections are very common, particularly during the colder months of winter or during the summer swimming season.

A child with a fever and an ear infection should be treated medically as soon as possible. An adult may want to try some home treatments or remedies for an ear infection. There are several home treatments that have proven effective to help with the discomfort of ear infections.

Vinegar Solution

A home remedy for ear infections--particularly swimmers ear--is to use a vinegar solution. The way to do this is to purchase regular white vinegar at the grocery store and mix it in a 50/50 solution with purified water. Purchase a regular dropper that can be found in the baby section of a department store or a drug store. Use this to drop one to three drops in the affected ear, two or three times per day.

If the infection is swimmers ear, which is a fungus-based infection, the ear infection should clear up. At the very least you will experience some relief from the ear pain.

Warm Water Bottle

For a child's earache, though not a cure, a warm water bottle or warm compress pressed against the ear may help to relieve pain, says the University of Maryland Medical Center Website. Another suggestion is a warm bag of salt, placed against the ear. This should help to relieve the intense pressure and pain of an earache.

Over-the-Counter Pain Relievers

To relieve the pain of an earache, try an over-the-counter pain reliever. This would include popular pain relief medications such as Tylenol or Ibuprofen. These are available in children's dosages as well as for adults. Though not a cure, these medicines can be given at home to relieve pain. If the pain is intense or severe, your family doctor may need to use a stronger pain reliever, especially for an older child or an adult.

Vitamin C and Zinc

Another at-home treatment includes eating a diet rich in Vitamin C, which helps fight infection. If you are unable to eat, you can take a Vitamin C tablet, which can be purchased at the local pharmacy. Also, Zinc is good for treating infections. Both Zinc tablets and Zinc lozenges are readily available at the drug store.