Make New Year's Resolutions for Your Hearing

Many of us have learned lessons when it comes to our health over the past year or so. COVID-19 has shown us just how important it is to be physically strong, which is going to make 2022 the year of health resolutions for many people. Whether or not you’ve already made your resolutions for next year, it’s never too late to resolve to make better choices when it comes to your hearing health. These are some of our suggestions for new year’s resolutions for your hearing.

Take hearing loss seriously.

If it goes untreated, hearing loss can have a lot of challenging consequences, from cognitive decline and falls to feeling socially isolated and experiencing a spike in anxiety and depression. It’s vital to ensure you’re aware of what might affect your hearing, and that you’re taking steps to preserve it.

Wear ear plugs in challenging situations.

Any sound that is greater than 85db can cause permanent hearing damage according to the experts. That could be noise created by a lawnmower, hobbies such as shooting or even something like the level or noise on a motorway or at a live gig. When you’re in a situation where your ears are going to be exposed to high levels of noise it’s essential to wear protection, such as ear plugs, to avoid challenges where hearing loss is concerned.

Monitor your hearing.

Losing your hearing isn’t just something that happens in old age and it’s important to make sure you’re getting hearing tests early on in life. 15% of under 69s will experience noise-induced hearing loss. 21 is the ideal age to start having a baseline hearing exam, repeating this every three years. If you have a family history of hearing loss, or you’re over 50, then it’s wise to get tested every year.

Make sure your headphones aren’t doing damage.

It’s vital to ensure that the headphones you use aren’t exposing you to hearing loss. Even some of the biggest brand headphones still have limits that are way above what is considered safe - the volume limit on Apple headphones, for example, is more than 100 db. There are two ways to ensure that you’re not damaging your hearing with headphones: keep the volume low and invest in noise cancelling headphones so that you don’t have to listen to music etc at higher volumes to block out ambient noise.

Invest in your future heart health.

There are proven links between heart health and hearing loss and the more you look after your heart, the lower your risk of hearing loss will be. One of the simplest ways to do this is to ensure that you’re getting enough exercise and that your diet is rich in nutrients. A healthy cardiovascular system ensures good blood circulation, which is one of the key factors in ensuring that you don’t lose your hearing early on.

If you’re making resolutions for 2022, make sure you factor in the need to protect your hearing, whatever next year may bring.