Show your ears some love with these tips.
With Valentine’s Day coming up, love is in the air — making it a perfect time to practice a little self-love too. You can start by learning about ways to protect your hearing and adopting our ear health tips into your daily routine!
Here are some essential ear health tips:
- Turn down the volume
- Wear earmuffs in the winter
- Carry earplugs with you
- Do ear-healthy exercises
- Allow quiet recovery time after a loud event
- Keep your ears clean and dry
- Manage your stress levels
Learn more about these ways to protect your hearing below.
Turn down the volume
In today’s technological world, we’re piping sound into our ears constantly, whether it’s from a TV, radio, MP3 player, or another device. Having the volume too high, especially when you’re wearing headphones or earbuds, can damage your hearing over time. Turning down the volume is beneficial for your ears; plus, it can help you appreciate and pay more attention to whatever you’re watching or listening.
Wear earmuffs in the winter
On cold weather days, we’ll put on multiple layers — big puffy jackets, boots, gloves, scarves — but our ears are often left exposed to the elements! Earmuffs are a perfect winter wardrobe staple: they keep your ears warm, shield them from sleet and snow, and even help protect you from loud sounds in your environment (like snowblowers).
Carry earplugs with you
Speaking of loud sounds, consider keeping earplugs in your arsenal year-round. You can tuck a small foam pair or two into your purse, wallet, or car console, so you always have a way to protect your ears from dangerous noise levels. If you are able, pack extras to help family, friends, or coworkers benefit from ear protection too!
Do ear-healthy exercises
Exercise promotes healthy blood flow to the ears, so it’s important to find ways to stay active each day. Aerobic exercises can get your heart working, yoga moves can keep you flexible, and weight training improves strength and balance, so aim for a healthy balance of several activity types throughout the week! You can also find ways to build exercise into your daily routine, like taking the stairs whenever you’re able.
Allow quiet recovery time after a loud event
If you have plans to enjoy a loud event such as a concert or fireworks show, make sure to give your ears a long, quiet break afterward. It can take two weeks or more for your ears to recover from one high-noise day. Be extra kind to them during this time!
Keep your ears clean and dry
When it comes to cleaning your ears safely, all you need is a warm, soapy washcloth to wash your outer ears and a towel to pat them dry. It’s important not to insert anything inside your ear, including fingers or cotton swabs. You might be trying to get earwax out when you do this, but instead, you’ll only push it deeper and could cause damage to your sensitive inner ear. If you suspect you have an earwax buildup, visit your doctor or audiologist to have it removed safely by a professional.
Manage your stress levels
Stress can affect so many parts of our health, and that includes a link to hearing loss. If you notice yourself feeling stressed or anxious more frequently than usual, take some time to ground yourself and practice stress management tips like meditating, eating healthy foods, and connecting with loved ones.
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