You probably pay the same attention to your ears on an everyday basis as compared to your eyes, teeth, or hair. Until your ears start ringing. Or itching. Or pain due to an ear infection. And in an instant, an audiometry test then makes it to the top of your priority list.
Taking proactive care of your ears is the way to go to avoid potential harm. To maintain healthy ears and prevent future hearing loss, certain lifestyle habits can be practiced: lowering the volume while using headphones, taking breaks between headphone usage, avoiding inserting objects in your ear canal, ensuring dry ears post-swimming, avoiding loud environments or using earplugs in one, and regular audiometry tests (better safe than sorry!).
Following are some ways to protect your hearing:
Wear Earplugs around Loud Noises:
In this day and age, noise is inevitable, be it machine or man-induced. From aircraft to concerts, lawnmowers to traffic noise, all can gradually lead to hearing loss if you are not vigilant about the long-term impact, as these activities become a part of our daily life. Wearing earplugs or earmuffs in cacophonous environments like concerts, construction sites, and even high-traffic areas can protect your ears from damage and the risk of hearing loss. An audiologist can recommend earplugs based on requirement, ranging from ready-made ones to custom ones.
Turn Down the Volume!
It is no secret that listening to music or watching shows for prolonged hours on high volumes can damage hearing. You are at a much higher risk if you use earbuds that sit right at your eardrum. Keep the volume turned down while watching TV or listening to music at home or in the car. Prefer using bone-conduction headphones instead of buds that go into your ear, as those make zero contact with your ear and put you at zero hearing loss risk.
60/60 Rule:
The 60-60 rule is all about listening to media like music, podcasts, audiobooks, or films, at a 60% volume for under 60 minutes per day. This ensures a safer and healthier listening experience, better lifestyle, and prevents long-term damaging effects to hearing, especially in growing children.
Cotton Swabs are not your Ear’s Friend:
For years now, people have been using cotton swabs to clean their ears and take out the wax buildup from inside their ears. However, this may not be doing the trick as well as you think. Various reports have observed and noted that cotton swabs push the earwax deeper into the ear canal. This can lead to eardrum damage and make one prone to hearing loss risks.
Keep your Ears Clean and Dry:
Sports and physical activities like swimming can lead to water or sweat accumulation in your ear canal for prolonged periods if not cleaned and dried properly. The water may contain bacteria that can harm ear health. Tilt your head after swimming or bathing to drain excess water out of the ear. A small, soft muslin cloth can be used to clean the ear out at home too.
Stay Active, Stay Healthy:
Regular exercise helps keep good blood circulation across the body and the organs. This includes blood and oxygen reaching the ears and keeping them healthy. This increased blood circulation is integral in keeping the ears functioning at their best.Exercise and physical activity elevate the heart rate, promoting better blood circulation throughout the body, including the ears. Moreover, regular exercise helps eliminate toxins and waste that may have built up in the ears over time.
Regular physical activity and practising mindfulness also reduces the risk of diabetes and other cardiovascular diseases which can have adverse impacts on ear health and can cause a risk of hearing loss or tinnitus in some cases. Regular exercise, therefore, helps eliminate potential risks of ear damage.
Moreover, regular physical activity also helps reduce stress on a daily basis, boosts immunity, and improves quality of sleep and life overall. These parameters are crucial in maintaining overall ear health as avoiding exercise can have a negative impact on ear health in the long-term.
Take Regular Hearing Tests:
Going for regular hearing tests is crucial in keeping a check on overall ear health and identifying any concerns early on before they progress, if any. Changes or problems with hearing can be tested and addressed after making informed choices. With the current lifestyle of the world, where we are constantly exposed to loud noises, we can all benefit from hearing tests. Our hearing declines naturally as we age anyway, and also because of genetic or underlying medical conditions. A hearing test, such as an audiometry test, can identify the problem in the ear and help take the correct steps in the right direction. If required, a hearing aid may be recommended for people with hearing loss.
Protecting your ears and hearing health is essential for maintaining a high quality of life and also balancing mood. By incorporating simple lifestyle changes such as using earplugs in noisy environments, maintaining safe listening practices, and staying physically active (if not already a part of your routine), you can safeguard your hearing for years to come. Regular hearing assessments, such as audiometry tests, are vital in detecting early signs of hearing loss and help take timely action to address problems which may escalate in the future if ignored. Keep your ears healthy, and they’ll keep you connected to the world around you!