Is It Safe To Wear Earplugs To Bed Every Night?

When I entered my first year of university, I lived in a traditional dorm room that I shared with another student. Our schedules weren’t a perfect match, so I started wearing earplugs to bed when she was up late studying or had to be up early for a morning class and I wanted to sleep in.

My earplug dependency continued into my 20s and 30s, as I moved into old apartments with paper-thin walls, in buildings next to busy streets and slept next to heavy-breathing (and snoring) bedmates. Even when I was in a dead-quiet environment, like a cottage or a well-insulated hotel room, I would still pop in my trusty neon-orange foam earplugs to get a good night’s sleep. I know that some hate the dampening effect of wearing earplugs and being aurally deprived. To me, it’s adjacent to that ocean-like sound of putting your ear to a seashell. It calms me into a deep and interrupted sleep. 

It’s now been over 20 years since I started wearing earplugs to bed. In the past decade, I haven’t slept a single night without them. I know I’m not the only one hooked on earplugs. Family members and friends have told me about their own earplug dependencies. (Chatelaine editor-in-chief Maureen Halushak is a dedicated nighttime earplug user too, relying on the same foam variety as I do.)

Now that I’m living in a quiet, stable sleeping environment, I’ve thought about whether I should try and wean myself off of earplugs. I haven’t been successful yet. Every time I try to fall asleep without them, it feels like something’s missing and I’m worried that my sleep won’t be as good. After a few minutes, I cave in and pop my foamy, sound-dampening friends back in. Forgetting my earplugs when I travel sends me into a panic, so I now pack multiple pairs in multiple bags and compartments as a backup. It makes me wonder whether it’s healthy or not to be so dependent on earplugs to sleep well. 

Shanni Philp, an audiologist based in Aldershot, Ontario, also wears earplugs to bed every night. “I can’t do without them,” Philp says. “My husband is a loud breather. Even when he’s out of town, I’m still using them for when the dog is walking around at night, there’s a truck going by or it’s windy outside.” Philp does admit, to my fears, that habitual earplug-wearing can cause increased sensitivity to noise if I were to sleep without them. “You become accustomed to sleeping with relative silence,” she explains.

Thankfully, Philp says that nightly earplug usage is safe and effective, as long as you’re replacing them frequently. According to Philp, that’s whenever you notice the material wearing down or if they look dirty. Full disclosure: I use mine for weeks at a time, possibly months. But Philp says that this is way too long. “Earplugs have recommended use, like two to three uses or one use only,” she says. Since foam earplugs are soft and porous, reusing them can introduce dirt and bacteria into the ear, which can lead to an ear infection if the ear canal is irritated or scratched. (Upon closer inspection of the earplugs I’m using, the packaging states they’re single-use only.) 

If you’re a habitual earplug user like I am, Philp says a better option is to invest in a pair of custom-molded silicone earplugs. “Some people have smaller ears so it's hard to get foam earplugs to stay in, or they’re falling out overnight,” Philp says. Since the material is less porous, silicone earplugs can be washed with gentle soap and water to minimize dirt and bacteria. Custom earplugs involve a visit to an audiologist to get a mold made of your ear canals, which is then shipped out to a manufacturer to make the earplugs. At Philp’s clinic, Aldershot Audiology, a pair of custom molded silicone earplugs cost $175 and last up to ten years. Some health insurance plans may cover the expense.

If you’re in an extreme nighttime sound scenario when foam earplugs just won’t cut it (we’re talking truly egregious snorers or really loud neighbours), another option is a pair of Bluetooth-enabled noise-cancelling sleep earbuds like Quiet On or the Soundcore Sleep Earbuds from Anker. They have features like active noise cancelling and white noise playback.  

Dr. Janet Chung, an otolaryngologist (i.e. a head and neck doctor) at the University of Toronto’s Temerty Faculty of Medicine, says that there isn’t much literature around the safety of having a Bluetooth device in your ears overnight. But she is concerned about the density of the material the plugs are made from. “If you're a side sleeper, the hard plastic can rub up against your ear canal and can cause pressure ulcers or abrasions in the ear, which can lead to things like infection,” Chung explains. “I don’t think it’s necessarily dangerous, but it depends on every patient.”

Whether you’re a foam, custom-fit or Bluetooth-enabled earplug user, Chung says that cerumen impaction—a buildup of wax in the ear, is another concern. Earwax normally falls out of the ear during chewing and sleeping, but earplugs may prevent this natural clearing from happening. “Earplugs can not only block the earwax from coming out but they can also push the earwax in,” Chung explains. Symptoms of cerumen impaction include earaches, ear pain, itchiness, hearing loss and a feeling of fullness in your ear. Your family doctor or an audiologist can remove the buildup if you’re experiencing this issue. 

Chung says that anxiety around earplug dependency might call for therapy. “Cognitive behavioural therapy can be helpful for patients with anxiety around not wearing earplugs,” she says. Another method would be using a sound machine instead of earplugs, which would allow other sounds, like a smoke alarm, to come through. 

Or, try gradually ramping down the noise reduction ratings (NRR) of the earplugs you use. “Decrease it slowly so that there’s more noise that is introduced,” Chung  says. The earplugs I’m currently using are rated at 32, which is actually meant for machine workers. Chung suggests aiming for a 10 to 25 NRR and only wearing them when it’s absolutely necessary. 

I’m slowly trying Chung’s suggestions, going down from a 32 NRR earplug to 30 (I know it doesn’t sound like much, but the foam is less dense and it does feel different). I’m also trying to start my sleep without earplugs, not with the goal of falling asleep but just acclimating my sleepytime ears to the ambient sounds of the room. 

It might take a while, and I may never give up earplugs entirely. But Chung says it’s okay if I don’t. “I do think it’s generally safe to keep using them every day,” she says. “But keep an eye on it. Replace them often and don’t use too high of a decibel rating.”