What Does Hair in Your Ear Mean?
We aren't quite as hairy as our animal companions but that doesn't mean we aren't hairy. When you were born you may have been born with hair all over your body,this is called Lunago. This type of hair is produced by fetal hair follicles in the mid stages of pregnancy to help keep you warm in the womb. You loose this after a few weeks and then this is replaced by whats called vellus hair. This is the much finer hair and if you were to look at a part of your body that looks to be hairless you will actually see tiny little hairs, these are vellus hairs. The reason for this type of hair is it helps your body regulate its temperature. You will find vellus hair on areas such as your outer ear and ear lobes.
Having hair inside your ear is a different story, it is not ususual to have hair actually inside your ears, infact it is pretty normal. It is just a different type of hair. These are known as "tragi hairs" which are terminal hair that grow from follicle cartillage inside your outer ear canal. This type of hair is thicker and darker in appearance, it exists to work alongside your ears wax producing the ability to keep your ear clean and protect your ear. It works in a very similar filtration manner to nose hair preventing bacteria or germs from entering.
As you get older this type of hair can become even thicker, longer and more coarse. It might even start appearing outside of your ear canal. In some older men it is even noted to start appearing around the lower section of your outer ear near the openning of your ear canal. It is suggested that the follicles that produce these hairs are sensitive to testosterone which is why it is a more common occurance in men. Interestingly enough there is a Guiness World Record in 2007 for a human being with the longest ear hair. This is Victor Anthony who is a retired headmaster living in India. His ear hair reached a record length of 18.1 cm, he was known by his pupils as the "ear-haired teacher".
Having extra hair in your ears isn't going to cause a major problem, it may only be noticed by a specialist such as your doctor or audiologist who looks into your ear. If they need to have a good look at the health of your ear drum and ear canal, they may need to have the ear hair trimmed down. There is the chance that excessive ear hair can make you more susceptible to ear infections if you let water in your ear and it gets trapped in your ear.
It is important to remeber that such hair should not try to be removed completely for two main reasons; the inside of your ear is very delicate, you should not poke anything into your ear and these hairs have a job to do and removing them fully could cause more harm than good. There are options of laser hair treatment, it is a good idea to have a chat with a professional first. Removing the ear hair in the majority of cases is purely a cosmetic option.
Some further reading and resources about hair in your ears:
An eBook on Amazon about clinical dermatology
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/ear-infections/