You’ve most likely already noticed that your hearing is waning. Hearing loss typically develops due to decisions you make without knowing they’re impacting your hearing.
With a few basic lifestyle changes, many types of hearing loss can be prevented. Let’s look at six surprising secrets that will help you protect your hearing.
1. Manage Your Blood Pressure
Persistently high blood pressure is not good. A study found that hearing loss was 52% more likely with people who have higher than average blood pressure and they’re more likely to have other health problems as well.
Take steps to lower your blood pressure and avoid hearing damage. See a doctor right away and never disregard your high blood pressure. Blood pressure management includes proper diet, exercise, stress management, and following your doctor’s advice.
2. Stop Smoking
There are plenty of good reasons to quit smoking, here’s another: Smokers are 15% more likely to suffer from hearing loss. Even more shocking: People who are regularly subjected to second-hand smoke are 28% more likely to develop hearing troubles. The harmful repercussions of second-hand smoke are not only harmful, they also remain in the air for long periods.
If you’re a smoker, protect your hearing and think about quitting. Take actions to minimize your exposure to second-hand smoke if you spend time around a smoker.
3. Keep Your Diabetes Under Control
One in four adults is either pre-diabetic or diabetic. A pre-diabetic person is extremely likely to develop diabetes within 5 years if they don’t make significant lifestyle changes.
Blood vessels that are damaged by high blood sugar don’t effectively transport nutrients. Compared to a person who doesn’t have diabetes, a diabetic person has more than twice the chance of developing hearing loss.
If you suffer from diabetes, take the steps necessary to properly control it. If you are at risk of getting type 2 diabetes, protect your hearing by making lifestyle changes to avoid it.
4. Lose Some Weight
This isn’t about body image or feeling great about yourself. It’s about your health. As your Body Mass Index (BMI) rises, so does your possibility of hearing loss and other health problems. The chance of developing hearing loss rises by 17% for a slightly obese woman with a BMI of 30 to 34. For an individual with a BMI of 40 (moderate obesity), the risk goes up to 25%.
Take measures to shed that excess weight. Something as simple as walking for 30 minutes each day can lower your chance of hearing loss and prolong your life.
5. OTC Medications Shouldn’t be Overused
Hearing impairment can be the consequence of some over-the-counter (OTC) medications. The more frequently these drugs are used over a long period of time, the greater the risk.
Typical over-the-counter medicines that affect hearing include aspirin, NSAIDs (like naproxen, ibuprofen), and acetaminophen. Take these medications sparingly and consult your doctor if you’re using them on a regular basis.
Studies show that you’ll probably be okay if you’re taking these medications periodically in the recommended doses. Using them every day, however, increases the chance of hearing loss by up to 40% for men.
Always follow your doctor’s advice. But if you’re taking these medications each day to deal with chronic pain or thin your blood, talk to your doctor about lifestyle changes you can implement to reduce your dependence on OTC drugs.
6. Eat More Broccoli
Broccoli is packed with nutrients and vitamins including C and K and also is high in iron. Iron is vital to blood circulation and a healthy heart. Nutrients and oxygen are transported to your cells which helps keep them healthy and nourished and iron is an important part of this process.
For vegetarians or people who don’t eat meat very often, 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.
Pennsylvania State University researchers studied over 300,000 individuals. People who have anemia (severe iron deficiency) are two times as likely, according to this research, to develop sensorineural hearing loss than people who have normal iron concentrations. Age-related irreversible hearing loss is what the technical term “sensorineural hearing loss” refers to.
Sound is received and sent to the brain by fragile little hairs in the inner ear which resonate with the volume and frequency of that sound. If an iron deficiency or poor circulation causes these delicate hairs to die they will never grow back.
Don’t wait to get a hearing exam because you’re never too young. Reduce hearing loss by implementing these simple secrets in your daily life.