Hearing aids are an effective and popular tool for those with hearing loss. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 7.1% of adults aged 45 and over used a hearing aid in 2019.
While hearing aids make it easier to process sounds and navigate throughout your daily life, it’s still important to take steps to protect your ears from damage and further hearing loss.
Protect Your Ears At Work
For some of us, the workplace can pose a threat to our hearing. If you work in a loud environment, such as a construction site, you will regularly be exposed to noise that reaches a volume of well above 85 dB. Prolonged exposure to noise above this volume can cause hearing loss, with louder noises taking less time to cause damage. This is why it’s essential to wear hearing protection if your work environment is loud.
However, this can sometimes pose a problem because hearing protection like earplugs isn’t possible to wear at the same time as your hearing aids. You don’t want to be in a situation where you have to choose between protecting your ears and wearing hearing aids. It’s essential to keep your hearing aids on so that you can hear important sounds and be fully aware of your surroundings, while also protecting your ears. Thankfully, earmuffs can work to fully cover your ears and offer protection without interfering with your hearing aids.
Don’t Forget About Hearing Protection At Home Too
It’s not just at work where you need to consider hearing protection, but at home as well. Activities like mowing the lawn, using a leaf blower, making home repairs or even using certain kitchen appliances can all reach harmful levels. Using hearing protection and looking for appliances that have a low decibel level can help keep your ears safe at home.
Avoid Using Cotton Swabs To Remove Earwax
Too much earwax can cause problems for both your ears and your hearing aids. It can harm the parts of your hearing aid sensitive to moisture leading to malfunction, as well as causing increased feedback or whistling in your device.
Additionally, earwax buildup can cause issues like a fullness feeling in your ear, as well as muffled hearing, tinnitus, ear pain and ear infections.
While these are problems you want to avoid, you do not want to use a cotton swab to remove wax buildup. Instead, visit a medical provider who can perform earwax removal in the office or recommend safe at-home remedies like removal kits that can be found at Thumb Butte Pharmacy or other local drugstores.
If you would like more information about protecting your ears with hearing aids or wish to schedule an appointment, contact Prescott Ear, Nose, Throat & Allergy today.