As we get older we tend to think that hearing loss only has an affect on older people. You most likely had older adults around you struggling to hear conversations or using hearing aids.
As you grow up, you start to understand that there is another factor regarding hearing loss in addition to aging.
Many people are scared to admit they suffer from hearing loss because it makes them feel old.
It Doesn’t Make a Difference how old you are, you can Still Have Hearing Loss
Even in pre-teens, audiologists can already identify some hearing loss in 13% of instances. Clearly, a person who is 12 years old is not really “old”. Teenage hearing loss has gone up 33% in the past 30 years.
What are the key factors involved?
2% of 45 – 55-year-olds and 8% of 55 – 64-year-olds presently have debilitating hearing loss.
The difficulty is not with aging. What you might think of as age-associated hearing loss is actually totally preventable. And you have the ability to drastically minimize the progression of your hearing loss.
Sensorineural hearing loss, which is the medical terminology for age-related hearing loss, is generally induced by by loud noise.
For generations hearing loss was believed to be inevitable when you get older. But today, we are more knowledgeable concerning exactly how to safeguard your hearing and also restore it.
How Hearing Loss is Caused by Loud Noise
You should comprehend that noise is not harmless if you desire to begin to protect your ears.
Waves of pressure are what makeup sound. Going down into your ear these waves go beyond your eardrum and into the inner ear.
Tiny hair cells vibrate here inside of the inner ear. Which hair cells vibrate, and how rapidly or frequently they vibrate, become a neurological code. Your brain can render this code into words, the sound of wind, a warning alert, a yell or whatever else you might hear.
The issue is that as sounds are too loud these little hairs are damaged beyond repair. The sound vibrates them until they die.
If these hairs are gone then so is your hearing.
Why Noise-Related Hearing Loss is Irreversible
If you cut yourself, the injury will heal. But when you injure these tiny hair cells, they don’t heal, and they never ever grow back again. The more often you’re exposed to loud noises, the more of these tiny hair cells you lose.
As they die, hearing loss progresses.
Hearing Damage is Caused by Common Sounds
Most people are surprised to find out that everyday activities may be the cause of hearing loss. You may not question:
- Going to a concert/play/movie
- Wearing earbuds/head phones
- Turning the car stereo way up
- Mowing the lawn
- Using farm equipment
- Riding a motorcycle/snowmobile
- Driving on a busy highway with the windows or top down
- Working in a manufacturing plant or other loud profession
- Being a musician
These activities don’t need to be given up. The good thing is, you can take practical measures to reduce noise-related hearing loss.
How to Keep Hearing Loss From Making You “Feel” Like Your old
You can admit that you suffer from hearing loss without feeling old. The longer you dismiss it, the worse it will get, and you will wind up feeling older much sooner because of:
- Increased Fall Risk
- Social Isolation
- More frequent trips to the ER
- Strained relationships
These are all substantially more prevalent in people with untreated hearing loss.
Avoid Continued Hearing Problems
Begin by determining exactly how to avoid hearing damage.
- Sound meter apps are readily available for your phone that can show you how loud things are.
- Learn about dangerous volumes. Over 85 dB (decibels) can cause irreversible hearing loss in only 8 hours. 110 dB takes about 15 minutes to cause irreversible hearing loss. 120 dB and higher causes instant hearing loss. A gunshot is around 140 to 170 dB.
- You should know that you have already caused hearing damage if you have had a hard time hearing, or if your ears were ringing, after a concert. As time goes by it will get worse.
- Wear earplugs and/or sound-dampening earmuffs when appropriate.
- Follow workplace hearing protection restrictions.
- Minimize your exposure time to loud sounds.
- Avoid standing close to loudspeakers or turning speakers up when at home.
- Invest in earbuds/headphones which have integrated volume control. These don’t go higher 90 decibels. Most people would have to listen almost non-stop all the time to cause permanent damage.
- High blood pressure, not enough blood oxygen, and some medications tend to cause you to be more susceptible at lower volumes. To be certain, never listen to headphones at above 50%. Car speakers differ.
- Wear your hearing aid. Not wearing a hearing aid when you need them causes the brain to atrophy. It’s comparable to your leg muscles. If you stop walking, it will be much harder to walk.
Schedule a Hearing Exam
Are you in denial or procrastinating on it? Make the right choice sooner than later. You need to be aware so you can be proactive to reduce further damage.
Get in touch with Your Hearing Specialist Concerning Hearing Solutions
There are no “normal cures” for hearing impairment. If hearing loss is serious, it may be time to get a hearing aid.
A Cost-Benefits Assessment is the First Step
Many people are either in denial about hearing loss, or, they choose to “tough it out.” They believe that hearing aids will make them feel old. Or perhaps they believe that they are too expensive.
But as soon as they realize that hearing loss will decline faster and can cause several health and personal complications, it’s easy to see that the pros greatly outweigh the cons.
Talk to a hearing care specialist now about getting a hearing test. And if hearing aids are recommended, don’t worry about “feeling old.” Hearing aids nowadays are much sleeker and more advanced than you may think!