You’ve most likely already noticed that your hearing is failing. Hearing loss typically develops as a result of decisions you make without knowing they’re impacting your hearing.
With a few basic lifestyle changes, many kinds of hearing loss can be prevented. What follows are 6 secrets that will help you preserve your hearing.
1. Regulate Your Blood Pressure
It’s not good if your blood pressure stays high. A study found that hearing loss was 52% more likely with people who have above average blood pressure and they’re more likely to have other health issues also.
Take actions to lower your blood pressure and prevent hearing damage. Don’t ignore high blood pressure or wait to consult a doctor. Management of blood pressure includes proper diet, exercise, stress management, and following your doctor’s advice.
2. Quit Smoking
Here’s one more reason to quit: Hearing loss is 15% more likely to impact smokers. Even more shocking: Individuals who are regularly subjected to second-hand smoke are 28% more likely to have hearing problems. The harmful repercussions of second-hand smoke are not only harmful, they also hang in the air for long periods.
Consider protecting your hearing, if you’re a smoker, by quitting. Take actions to decrease your exposure to second-hand smoke if you hang out with a smoker.
3. Keep Your Diabetes in Check
Diabetes or pre-diabetes affects one out of four adults. Unless they make some significant lifestyle changes, somebody who is pre-diabetic will very likely develop diabetes within 5 years.
High blood sugar damages blood vessels, which makes it extremely hard for them to efficiently carry nutrients. Compared to someone who doesn’t have diabetes, a diabetic person has more than twice the chance of developing hearing loss.
If you suffer from diabetes, safeguard your hearing by taking the proper steps to control it. Safeguard your hearing by making lifestyle changes if you are at risk of type 2 diabetes.
4. Lose Some Weight
This is more about your health than feeling great about how you look. Hearing loss and other health problems increase as your Body Mass Index (BMI) rises. A mildly obese woman (with a 30 to 34 BMI) has a 17% higher risk of getting hearing loss. For someone with a BMI of 40 (moderate obesity), the risk increases to 25%.
Work to get rid of some of that excess weight. Your life can be prolonged and your hearing can be protected by something as basic as walking for 30 minutes each day.
5. OTC Drugs Shouldn’t be Overused
Certain over-the-counter (OTC) drugs can lead to hearing loss. The risk rises when these medications are taken regularly over prolonged periods of time.
Medicines including acetaminophen, ibuprofen, naproxen, and aspirin are known to lead to hearing loss. Take these medications moderately and seek advice from your doctor if you’re using them regularly.
If you’re using the recommended dose for the periodic headache, studies suggest you’ll most likely be okay. The risk of hearing loss increases up to 40% for men, however, when these medicines are used on a daily basis.
Your doctor’s orders should always be followed. But if you’re taking these medications each day to manage chronic pain or thin your blood, consult your doctor about lifestyle changes you can make to reduce your dependence on OTC drugs.
6. Eat More Broccoli
Broccoli is packed with iron along with important nutrients like vitamins C and K. Iron is vital to blood circulation and a healthy heart. Nutrients and oxygen are transported to your cells which helps keep them nourished and healthy and iron is a major part of this process.
For vegetarians or people who don’t eat meat very often, eating a sufficient amount of plant-based iron is important. 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 individuals were studied by Pennsylvania State University. The researchers found participants with anemia (severe iron deficiency) were two times as likely to experience sensorineural hearing loss as those without the condition. Age-related permanent hearing loss is what the technical term “sensorineural hearing loss” refers to.
Sound is received and transmitted to the brain by tiny little hairs in the inner ear which resonate with the volume and frequency of that sound. If these hair cells die due to poor circulation or other complications related to iron deficiency, they won’t grow back.
Don’t wait to get a hearing test because you’re never too young. Reduce hearing loss by using these simple tips in your everyday life.
