Wednesday 16/July/2025 – 10:11 PM
A recent study showed that the volatile organic compounds in the earwax may carry chemical signals indicating this neurological disease.
A study that reveals: Earwax may be a sign of Parkinson’s infection
According to the Times Now News website, the results of the new study are based on previous research indicating that Parkinson’s disease changes the smell of the body slightly, through changes in sebum, which is the oily material that naturally moisturizes hair and skin.
The problem of analyzing sebum on the skin is that exposure to air and the outer environment makes it less reliable in clinical tests, so a team of researchers from the University of Zhejiang sought to study earwax with the assumption that it is more protected.
At the same time, scientists believe that these volatile organic compounds can change due to inflammation, cell fatigue and nervous degeneration in the brain, and by conducting a set of appropriate tests, the team assumed that accurate signals of Parkinson’s disease can appear in the ears.
The researchers took swabs from the ear canal from 209 participants in the study, it was found that 108 of them were infected with Parkinson’s disease, and by analyzing the differences in the composition of the earwax between people with Parkinson’s disease and those who are not infected, 4 volatile organic compounds emerged, which are ethyl gasoline, 4-ethyle Tolwin, Bentanal and 2-Petadisil-1 and 3-Dioxulian.
