During a midwest summer, concerts are as frequent as changes of underpants. Or as frequent as they should be changed, anyway. Knowing I never have to worry about hearing loss going forward is comforting, but I can't be around blaring music without feeling for all those around me, who in the midst of their infinite joy are sustaining long term loss to their hearing.
Today I step aside and let a new face give you some insight on this topic, as well as some things you can do to help prevent hearing loss.
Ladies and Gentlemen...John O'Connor:
Preventing Hearing Loss
Classical music, the laughter of a child, and roar of the ocean are just a few of the reasons to keep your ears healthy and prevent hearing loss.
Loud noises cause the hair cells of the inner ear to become damaged as you are continually exposed to it. Ten million people suffer from this nerve deafness, and it lasts forever. Hearing loss can affect relationships and your quality of life. The best way to prevent this hearing loss is to stay away from extended exposure to loud noises such as chain saws or rock concerts that are 110-120 decibels. Even personal disc players and snow mobiles are both 100 decibels.
Hearing loss occurs slowly and is painless. After a rock concert or exposure to loud noise, your ears may have a "ringing" sound. You may have trouble hearing when someone speaks to you. These symptoms should subside in a few days, but if you keep exposing yourself to loud noises the hearing loss is permanent. When you need to turn up the volume on the TV, have to ask people to repeat themselves in conversation particularly in a crowded room, are unable to hear a phone ringing in another room or a baby crying, you may have early hearing loss.
How can you keep your ears healthy? You can turn the volume down on your mp3 player or television and buy power tools with sound controls. Earplugs or earmuffs that feel comfortable when you wear them help protect your hearing from loud noises at work or in the environment. You can teach your family to stay away from loud noises and use earplugs or earmuffs.
If you think your hearing is impaired and need hearing aids, you can have it tested by a trained professional. Even if you have some hearing loss, you can protect yourself from further damage by limiting your exposure to loud noises. A hearing aid will help you to hear better.
Smoking litters the air around you with irritants that congest the ear's eustachian tube so avoid second hand smoke and smoking. You can protect your ears by not sticking a finger, cotton swab or other object in them to remove earwax since it rams the earwax deeper plugging your eardrum. Hardened earwax needs to be removed by a professional.
When you need to blow your nose, you should always blow it gently through both of your nostrils. If you have a cold or sinus infection and are traveling by air, you can take a decongestant spray before landing or a decongestant a few hours before landing. When landing, yawn and swallow frequently to help your ears adjust to the change in cabin pressure. Frequent ear infections, especially in children, increases the risk of hearing loss. Breast feeding infants limits ear problems, and you can use decongestants at night to dry up excess fluid in the ears. Following these tips and making healthy lifestyle changes can increase your chance of sustained hearing in the future.
You can catch John on Facebook here,
or on Twitter here,
or follow his blog here.
As always, thanks for stopping by...and you stay classy. But mostly, thanks for stopping by.
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