It’s likely that you’ve already noticed that you don’t hear as well as you once did. In most cases, we don’t even realize that our decisions are negatively affecting our hearing.
Many kinds of hearing loss are avoidable with several simple lifestyle changes. What follows are 6 tips that will help you maintain your hearing.
1. Manage Your Blood Pressure
Persistently high blood pressure is not good. A study determined that people who have above-average blood pressure are 52% more likely to have hearing loss, not to mention other health concerns.
Take actions to reduce your blood pressure and avoid hearing damage. Consult a doctor as soon as possible and never disregard your high blood pressure. Following your doctor’s guidance, managing stress, eating a healthy diet, and getting regular exercise are all parts of blood pressure management.
2. Quit Smoking
Here’s one more reason to quit: Smokers are 15% more likely to develop hearing loss. Even more shocking: People who are regularly exposed to second-hand smoke are 28% more likely to develop hearing issues. Even if you leave the room, smoke lingers for long periods of time with detrimental consequences.
Consider safeguarding your hearing, if you’re a smoker, by quitting. If you hang out with a smoker, take measures to decrease your exposure to second-hand smoke.
3. Manage Your Diabetes
One out of four adults is either pre-diabetic or diabetic. Unless they make some significant lifestyle changes, somebody who is pre-diabetic will very likely develop diabetes within 5 years.
Blood vessels that are damaged by high blood sugar don’t effectively transport nutrients. A diabetic person is more than twice as likely to cope with hearing loss compared to a non-diabetic person.
If you suffer from diabetes, take the steps required to properly manage it. Safeguard your hearing by making lifestyle changes if you are at risk of type 2 diabetes.
4. Lose Some Weight
This isn’t about body image or feeling great about yourself. It’s about your health. Hearing loss and other health conditions increase as your Body Mass Index (BMI) increases. The risk of getting hearing loss rises by 17% for a slightly obese woman with a BMI of 30 to 34. A moderately obese individual has a 25% chance of hearing loss if they have a BMI of 40.
Take actions to shed that extra weight. Your life can be prolonged and your hearing can be safeguarded by something as simple as walking for 30 minutes each day.
5. Don’t Overuse OTC Drugs
Hearing impairment can be the result of some over-the-counter (OTC) medications. The danger rises when these medications are taken on a regular basis over lengthy periods of time.
Typical over-the-counter medicines that affect hearing include aspirin, NSAIDs (like naproxen, ibuprofen), and acetaminophen. Take these drugs in moderation and only with your doctor’s advice if you need to take them more frequently.
If you’re using the recommended dose for the periodic headache, studies indicate you’ll most likely be okay. Using them on a daily basis, however, raises the chance of hearing loss by up to 40% for men.
Your doctor’s advice should always be followed. Your doctor may be able to suggest some lifestyle changes that will reduce your dependence on these medicines if you are using them every day.
6. Eat More Broccoli
Broccoli is loaded with iron in addition to important nutrients such as vitamins C and K. Iron is integral to a healthy heart and strong blood circulation. Oxygen and nutrients are transported to your cells which helps keep them healthy and nourished and iron is a significant part of this process.
For vegetarians or individuals who don’t eat much meat, eating a sufficient amount of plant-based iron is essential. The iron found in plants is not as bioavailable as the iron in meat so people in this group are more likely to be deficient in iron.
More than 300,000 people were studied by Pennsylvania State University. Individuals who suffer from anemia (extreme iron deficiency) are two times as likely, according to this research, to experience sensorineural hearing loss than individuals who have normal iron concentrations. Age-related irreversible hearing loss is what the technical term “sensorineural hearing loss” refers to.
Sound is picked up and transmitted to the brain by delicate little hairs in the inner ear which resonate with the frequency and volume of that sound. If these hair cells die because of poor circulation or other concerns arising from iron deficiency, they never grow back.
Don’t wait to get a hearing test because you’re never too young. Prevent hearing loss by applying these simple secrets in your everyday life.