Health Spotlight | Doctor gives tips to recognize and avoid hearing hazards

ORLANDO, Fla. (Ivanhoe Newswire) — Hearing loss is one of the most common medical conditions that affects adults.

About 37.5 million Americans 18 and older report experiencing some difficulty hearing, and 1 out of 3 people between the ages of 65 and 74 in the United States has hearing loss .

How are we hurting our ears?

“I think people take it for granted until they lose it.” says Dr. Camilo Fernandez-Salvador, general ptolaryngologist at The Ear, Nose, Throat & Plastic Surgery Associates .

Some everyday things may be causing hearing loss.

First, loud noises, anything above 85 decibels, can cause hearing loss. What’s that mean? A hair dryer can reach up to 85 decibels, and some blenders can reach sounds levels up to 100.

Next is Q-Tip’s. Fernandez-Salvador said, “You’re not really cleaning your ear with a Q-Tip. You’re mostly packing wax, and you can give yourself an ear infection.”

Another factor: personal health. “High blood pressure; cerebral vascular conditions like history of strokes and things of that nature; thyroid disease; kidney disease; diabetes can do it. Multiple sclerosis, those are definite ones,” Fernandez-Salvador said.

Smoking can also hurt the ears. “It can irritate your airways, and you can end up with ear infections, things of that nature, and your cochlear is an organ that needs to be fed, uh, blood. So, if you have chronic smoking, you end up having narrower vessels, lack of blood flow.”

Some dental conditions also may be linked to hearing loss. “Bacteria in your teeth can travel to blood vessels that can cause narrowing or inflammation to adjacent organs.”

So, what can you do about it?

Studies say to try to keep your earbud volume between 60 to 85 decibels.

The IPhone health app can check audio levels and the surrounding environment.

Also, medications may have side effects that may harm ears “People forget that some medications have major side effects. Simple things like antibiotics can cause hearing loss.”

So, remember to lower the decibels now or face the silence later.

Summer is also here so you can expect to see people mowing their lawns, and they should remember to wear some hearing protection. A lawnmower can range from 80 to 100 decibels .

Health Spotlight is presented by Community Health Network. Contributors to this news report include: Marsha Lewis, producer; Cliff Tumetel, assistant producer; Chuck Bennethum, editor; and Matt Goldschmidt, videographer.