Aging is a natural, beautiful process that affects everyone. The gratification of retiring from a fulfilling profession, the exuberance of a grandchild’s laughter and the peace of living daily life at your own pace are some of life’s greatest rewards. Of course, as we age, our bodies age with us, meaning that we need to prioritize health in different ways than we did in previous decades of life.
The Importance of Hearing Health
One element of health that gets more attention as we get older is hearing health. Hearing loss can affect anyone at any age, but it rises in prominence significantly among older adults; at 71 years and older, it affects 65.3% of adults, and at 90 years and older, it rises to a whopping 96.2%. When hearing loss is linked to aging, it’s called presbycusis.
Hearing supports communication and connection, and it is also important for safety and personal independence. Being able to hear clearly makes it easier to stay engaged with family, friends and community activities, as well as be alert to environmental factors, such as alarms and traffic.
How to Protect Hearing Health as You Age
You may be able to manage the onset and/or progression of hearing loss by incorporating a few habits and strategies into your life. Here are some we recommend.
Use Hearing Protection
Loud noise and aging affect our hearing in the same manner: they cause the delicate sensory cells in the cochlea to deteriorate or break. While you can’t stop the aging process from affecting your ears, you can protect those cochlear cells from further damage by using hearing protection when around loud noises. Wear earplugs or earmuffs whenever possible, and take breaks when you find yourself in noisy situations.
Use Headphones Wisely
This is similar to the strategy above, as it also pertains to protecting against noise-induced hearing loss, but it’s worth its own section, given how common headphones are in our modern society. Personal entertainment devices, such as phones and tablets, can reach dangerous sound levels, and headphones blast those sound waves straight into the ear canal. Moreover, if you’re not using noise-canceling headphones, you may end up turning the volume up louder to tune out ambient noise. Keep headphone volume at a safe level, and consider switching to noise-canceling headphones.
Keep Your Ears Clean
Earwax is a naturally occurring substance that often falls out of your ears on its own, but buildup can occur. Complications of earwax buildup include a torn eardrum or frequent ear infections, both of which can cause lasting damage to the structures of your ears and lead to hearing loss. Take care of your ear health and keep your ears clean.
Important: never clean your ears with a cotton swab. These will push earwax further into your ear, exacerbating buildup. Instead, use a damp washcloth to gently clean the outside of your ears, use earwax softening drops or see a medical professional to keep them clean.
Stay Active
Our bodies are intricate networks of organs and systems that all work together. Therefore, living a healthy lifestyle often offers benefits across all aspects of your health. This is true for exercise. You may not think that staying active can help your hearing health, but it’s true! Adults who maintain some exercise regimen, even a moderate one, have significantly better hearing than those who do not.
Get Your Hearing Tested Regularly
Because hearing loss becomes more and more likely as you get older, it’s wise to stay on top of changes, even before they happen. Even if you don’t think you have any symptoms of hearing loss, it’s a good idea to get your hearing checked so you can establish a hearing baseline and catch any slight changes before it progresses further.
If it’s been a while since your last hearing test, don’t wait! Call Bangor Audiology today to set an appointment and be proactive about your hearing health.