Earwax is undeniably one of the body’s grossest secretions. Blood? A whole host of critters think that’s delicious. Snot? Hey, kids (and a truly worrying number of adults ) eat it. But earwax ? Disgusting. The rest of this article is behind a paywall. Please sign in or subscribe to access the full content.

Luckily, this aural secretion does have a couple of redeeming qualities. First, it protects our ears from stuff like dirt, bacteria, and water – and second, it can apparently tell you a lot about your health.

The color of health

Mostly, earwax is a kind of orangey color – though, technically, it starts off pale yellow and gets darker with age as it gathers dirt and bacteria. Pretty much any shade between that and amber-brown is okay, but there are some colors that should sound the

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