7 Habits That Are Damaging to Hearing Health

Ear health is vital for a healthy lifestyle. You risk becoming stressed by hearing loss, damaging the inner ear or getting tinnitus with poor ear care. Numerous things impact ear health, such as lifestyle and improper maintenance, but you can get help by the following:

• Regular checkups with an audiologist
• Treatments such as earwax removal
• Noise suppression like white noise machines
• Psychological tinnitus therapy
• Support from others

You don’t need to experience ear problems alone. You can get help from friends, family and professional audiologists. However, you can prevent most major ear-related and hearing loss problems by caring for your ears with protection, reduced exposure and a healthy lifestyle.

Not Getting a Checkup

A hearing test is highly beneficial, no matter your hearing health. Since hearing loss develops slowly, if you visit your audiologist often, you can detect symptoms early and take immediate action if necessary. This is to make sure your hearing isn’t damaged or changing for a specific reason, such as exposure to loud sounds at work or age-related. That’s why regular hearing tests are just as crucial as other physical examinations. You can usually book a free hearing test at your nearest hearing clinic or you can ask your physician for a routine hearing assessment.

Inadequate Hearing Protection

You can damage your hearing in many ways, and you can be exposed to hazardous sounds at work or at home. For example, when using a drill at a construction site or going to a cinema. In both of these cases, incoming sounds might be too loud. As a result, your hearing health is at risk, and permanent hearing loss could result from the sound levels. In any case, you should always use ear protection when around increased volume levels. Consider earplugs in cases of prolonged exposure or over-ear protectors for brief exposure to reduce the harm significantly.

Inserting Things into Your Ears

We all tend to clean our ears with cotton swabs to remove water, especially after a shower. Cotton swabs, however, are not recommended because accidents happen. In addition, tearing your eardrums can seriously damage your hearing. You may not be aware, but your ears are self-cleaning and actively prevent foreign objects from entering them. However, you may have a build-up of wax that needs removing. If home remedies like oil don’t work and you experience hearing problems, book an appointment with an audiologist for wax removal. 

Exposure to Loud Sounds

Noise-induced hearing loss is most common in teens and young adults. We all love listening to music with headphones to relax. However, many fun activities can cause severe damage to your ear health. Some of the worst offenders often include the following: 

• Radio and TV
• Busy restaurants
• Your job
• Loud hobbies like firing guns
• Video gaming with headphones

It is recommended that you reduce your music volume by around 40% to prevent some of the most common issues. Additionally, headphones are safer than earphones since nothing is inserted. Many modern devices have an auto-volume limit if you aren’t sure about the level.

Letting Your Ears Get Wet

The middle part of your ear has a cavity filled with air. Moisture will wreak havoc on the middle ear system and cause bacteria to grow. This can also cause an infection in the ear canal. Therefore, it is recommended that you pat your ears dry after bathing or showering with a towel or tissues.

Tilt your head to one side and gently pull your earlobe to remove excess water. This encourages the water to come out. You can also prevent your ears from becoming wet by using waterproof earplugs or inserting petroleum jelly-soaked cotton buds into your ears for protection.   

No Quiet Time 

You must give your ears some time to recover if you are constantly exposed to loud noises at work or have been somewhere loud like a bar or concert. If your job means you are around loud sounds all day, at the very least, you should take a ten-minute break on your shift somewhere tranquil with only natural sounds if possible.

On the other hand, if you have experienced prolonged exposure in a short space of time, like a football game or a music performance, you need around sixteen hours of quiet for your ears to recover from the onslaught of noise fully.  

Your Lifestyle Choices

The physical and psychological benefits of exercise are well documented. But exercise is also great for your ears. As a result of exercising, the blood flows better into the ear, which helps the inner parts to stay healthy and functioning. However, stress can damage your ears, and a poor diet with no exercise is a common cause of tinnitus.

This is because the limbic system, the part of your brain that controls emotions, also controls your hearing. So, overwork, fatigue and diet-related lethargy can cause hearing problems, as can excess alcohol and caffeine.

Audiologists can help with your ear problems, but they can only do so much. You can help prevent severe damage to your ears by changing your lifestyle habits. For example, you should limit your exposure to loud sounds, avoid excess moisture and get checkups.

Please contact us at Texas Professional Hearing Center to learn more about hearing treatment and management. You can call us at (281) 420-8033.