Seems like we’re always attempting to stay young. We spend countless hours trying everything possible to stay youthful. From specialized diets to gym memberships to Botox to wrinkle creams. And yet, even with all that effort (and all those hours), we have a tendency to avoid doing one simple thing that might actually work: wearing ear protection.
Most people most likely think of hearing loss as inevitable as we get older. But it’s not as simple as that. You can keep your hearing in good shape and help avoid damage by safeguarding and taking care of your ears. And as time goes by, great hearing can have considerable anti-aging advantages.
Hearing And Aging
When we discuss “aging” we don’t normally mean the actual passing of time. Rather, “aging” usually describes the presentation of certain physical, mental, or emotional characteristics that we associate with aging. Pain in your joints is a perfect illustration of this. When your knees start to bother you, you might associate that with “getting old”. But it’s not age alone that causes the problem (your daily 5-mile run may have something to do with it, also).
Many kinds of hearing loss fall under this category. There’s a build-up of damage as you age. And in most circumstances, it’s the build-up of damage that leads to the actual hearing degeneration. And it’s typically downhill from there. Several other signs of aging have been connected to hearing loss:
- The onset of mental issues, including dementia, can sometimes be accelerated by neglected or undetected hearing loss.
- In some instances, the mental strain associated with attempting to hear can result in problems such as loss of memory or insomnia. And that can make you feel like you’re getting old in a particularly profound way.
- Self isolation from friends and family can be the outcome of untreated hearing loss.
- Anxiety and depression have been shown to have a significant connection to hearing loss.
So How do I Overcome Age-Related Hearing Loss?
When you combat the “signs of aging” in your ears, you’re actually placing a focus on controlling damage. And it’s fortunate that we can accomplish that using several methods. For instance, you can:
- Become more aware. You can still have harm to your hearing even if sounds are not painfully loud. Your ears can also be injured by moderate noise if you are exposed to it for long periods of time.
- If you happen to work in a rather noisy environment, wear ear protection. Modern ear muffs have amazing technology that can let you hear voices clearly while eliminating loud, harmful environmental sounds.
- As much as you can, avoid loud noises. And when you can’t avoid high volume places, use hearing protection. So make sure you wear earplugs when you go see your favorite band.
All of these actions will help protect your hearing. But there’s one more thing you can do to keep your hearing in good condition: contact us for a hearing test. Making sure you undergo hearing examinations with regular frequency can help you discover hearing loss before it’s even perceptible. You should still have an exam even if your hearing is fine so that you can have a baseline to compare against in the future.
Wear Hearing Aids to Keep Your Ears Healthy
The world we live in can be noisy. In spite of your best effort to take care of your hearing, you still might ultimately notice some hearing loss. If that’s the situation, it’s vital that you seek help as quickly as possible. Some of the age related issues associated with hearing loss can be prevented with a quality pair of set aids.
You can perhaps think of hearing aids as a facelift for your ears: something to allow your ears to perform a little more youthfully. And that can help keep depression, dementia, and other problems from increasing. The example isn’t ideal, because hearing aids are necessary and a facelift isn’t, but you get the point. Wrinkle creams might help you look younger. But if you actually want to battle aging and feel somewhat more youthful, your best bet is to safeguard your ears and treat your hearing loss.