3 Tips for Caring for Your Ears and Hearing

In today's world, we have endless opportunities to live out our lives in incredibly exciting ways. And as much as we tend to love our new technologically advanced lives, there are both positives and challenges that we need to be aware of so that we get the best out of our lives with as few downsides as possible. Unfortunately, some of these fabulous gadgets, live events, and super-enhanced home entertainment systems are having a negative impact on our hearing. So that means it's time to check in and conduct a quick audit on our lifestyle to make sure that we're getting the most out of our socially upwardly mobile selves while not having to pay a very big price later. First, let's understand the current environment. A recent national study found that 1 in 5 adolescents in the United States now experiences some form of hearing loss or impairment. The study found a 31 percent increase in hearing loss between young people aged between 12 and 19 years old. Those results over time could lead to a massive public health problem.

Contributing Factors

What factors are driving this increase? While the statistics for young people are frightening, of course, hearing loss is not limited to that demographic. As we age, presbycusis, or age-related hearing loss, does become more common as a natural effect of aging. Additionally, chronic exposure to loud noises socially and professionally can contribute to hearing loss as well. Lifestyle circumstancesappear to be the biggest factor in these increases, namely excessively loud music in nightclubs, surrounding live music events, or at festivals. The fact that many people appear to be permanently attached to earphones and other listening devices is not helping either. In fact, the amount of bacteria produced in the ear has been show to rise dramatically with hour on hour of continued earphone use. One hour of use can increase ear bacteria by more than 700%. When we factor in the volume that these devices allow, the situation doesn't add up to a good outcome. Hereditary issues, workplace noise, recreational activities, certain medications, or illnesses can also have an impact on hearing health and could lead to significant damage. The increase in people experiencing tinnitus or the constant ringing in one or both ears is also attributed to the massive changes in lifestyle humanity has experienced over the last couple of decades; and when it comes to changes, tinnitus affects your lifestyle in many undesirable ways.

3 Tips for Caring for Your Ears and Hearing

As gloomy as hearing loss and damage sounds, it is possible to have a massive impact on the effects of what's happening around you by taking some simple protective acts and making a few simple lifestyle changes. For starters, if you work in a loud or noisy environment, then you may decide to use noise-canceling headphones, earmuffs, or earplugs. Take care to find the right solution for you; and if you are required to work in high noise environments as a matter of course, you may want to consider custom-made devices that are tailored to you specifically.

Turn the Volume Down

The vast majority of hearing loss challenges can be fixed at the point of causation. Simply reducing the volume of music or the TV is the easiest and most productive action to take, and this is especially true when using earpods, earphones, or other listening devices.

Give Your Ears Time to Recover

If you've had a night out or attended a festival or concert, then give your ears time to recover before blasting them with sound all over again. Researchers have found that your ears need an average of 16 hours of quiet to recover from just one loud night out.

Exercise and Stay Active

You may not know this, but staying active and partaking in regular cardiovascular exercise is good for your ears. As exercise pumps blood throughout your body, this includes your ears. Exercise helps your ears' internal parts stay healthy and work to their maximum potential.

Learn more about protecting your ears. Without cramping your style, you can live your best life and get the most out of every event and every situation healthily and safely.

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