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A lot of people suffer from hearing loss later in life. In fact, it can affect 1 in 6 of us. Here’s how you can spot the signs of hearing loss and protect your hearing.
Look for the Signs of Hearing Loss
Hearing loss isn’t always obvious at first. Many people begin to notice it in conversations. You may find it is harder to hear what people are saying, particularly in a crowded place with lots of background noise. You may also struggle to hear people on the phone and find you more often ask people to repeat themselves. Or, you may notice you turn the volume up on your TV more often. This another sign that your hearing may be reduced.
Schedule a Hearing Test
A hearing test will help to determine whether you do indeed have hearing loss. There are free hearing tests that you can take online, but you may prefer to go into your local hearing center and talk to an audiologist. Knowing the extent of your hearing loss is important as it will help you to determine the right prescription for a hearing aid.
Buy the Right Hearing Aid
Hearing aids come in all shapes and sizes – some are placed in the ear, others sit behind the ear. On top of hearing loss, hearing aids may also help to treat conditions such as tinnitus. It’s worth doing your research to find the best hearing aid for you. You can read all about hearing aids online or talk to an audiologist.
Take Care of Your Hearing Aid
Hearing aids rely on battery power. You can preserve the life of these batteries by turning off your hearing aid at night and leaving the battery door open. Batteries should also be stored in the right environment – ideally somewhere not too cool or humid. On top of looking after the hearing aid’s batteries, it’s important to keep your hearing aid clean to keep it working properly. You can buy hearing aid cleaning kits for this purpose.
Break Bad Habits
Certain habits may be contributing to hearing loss and making it worse. By giving up these habits, you may be able to stop the progression of your hearing loss. Using cotton buds to clean your ears is one bad habit worth giving up as this can damage receptors in the ears by pushing earwax further into the ear canal. You may also want to give up smoking as this has also been linked to hearing loss by restricting blood flow to sensory receptors. On top of this, you should always wear ear protection in loud environments – this includes music venues, motor-sports events or loud work environments such as construction sites. A good diet and exercise also helps protect hearing by encouraging healthy blood flow to our ears.
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