"Impacted" here means your ear canals are partially or completely blocked by accumulated wax, which can cause infection and also impairs balance and hearing. It's really quite unpleasant, and requires minor medical intervention to safely resolve.
Earwax is meant to be present, sure. It is also meant to drain on its own over time through the ear canal, in order to balance production and avoid buildup. Having something stuck in your ear canal a lot of the time complicates this, because now there's nowhere for the wax to go. If the thing that's stuck in your ear is an AirPod, the wax will accumulate there too, but eventually it will be full. Now you're at risk of impaction, and also your AirPod also doesn't work well or maybe at all any more, because its sound channel is blocked too.
Sure, earwax is "meant" to be present, and isn't a problem absent excess. But humans also aren't "meant" to be deliberately occluding our ear canals for hours every day. There's "meant" to be a balance between production and natural removal via the ear canal, and occluding the ear canal throws that off. If we're going to be doing that, we're wise also to think about how to deal with the problem of earwax buildup that that can cause.
But you don't have to take my word for it! Cedars-Sinai [0]:
> Objects placed in your ear can also lead to impacted earwax, especially if done repeatedly...Hearing aids, swimming plugs, and swim molds can have [this] effect with repeated use.
> You may also increase your risk if you keep putting objects in your ear, such as a hearing aid.
> [You] might be able to prevent repeated episodes. Using a topical agent once a week may help.
You're right that, for most people, regular hygiene should be enough. If your AirPods are getting so full of earwax that they don't work properly any more, I think it's fair to wonder whether the "most people" standard any longer applies.
Earwax is meant to be present, sure. It is also meant to drain on its own over time through the ear canal, in order to balance production and avoid buildup. Having something stuck in your ear canal a lot of the time complicates this, because now there's nowhere for the wax to go. If the thing that's stuck in your ear is an AirPod, the wax will accumulate there too, but eventually it will be full. Now you're at risk of impaction, and also your AirPod also doesn't work well or maybe at all any more, because its sound channel is blocked too.
Sure, earwax is "meant" to be present, and isn't a problem absent excess. But humans also aren't "meant" to be deliberately occluding our ear canals for hours every day. There's "meant" to be a balance between production and natural removal via the ear canal, and occluding the ear canal throws that off. If we're going to be doing that, we're wise also to think about how to deal with the problem of earwax buildup that that can cause.
But you don't have to take my word for it! Cedars-Sinai [0]:
> Objects placed in your ear can also lead to impacted earwax, especially if done repeatedly...Hearing aids, swimming plugs, and swim molds can have [this] effect with repeated use.
> You may also increase your risk if you keep putting objects in your ear, such as a hearing aid.
> [You] might be able to prevent repeated episodes. Using a topical agent once a week may help.
You're right that, for most people, regular hygiene should be enough. If your AirPods are getting so full of earwax that they don't work properly any more, I think it's fair to wonder whether the "most people" standard any longer applies.
[0] https://www.cedars-sinai.org/health-library/diseases-and-con...