Take care of your hearing
It's important to take care of your ears and avoid hearing loss.
Hearing loss can be caused, according to Springs hearing aid acoustician Johann Kruger, by exposure to noise exposure including industrial noise, heavy machinery, loud music and gunshots.
Certain medication and medical conditions can also cause hearing loss and Kruger suggests contacting your doctor or hearing professional for more information about this.
Other factors include age or time (presbycusis), genetic or hereditary factors and head trauma like that experienced in a car accident.
Kruger suggests having your hearing tested annually to determine whether you have hearing loss and to what extent.
“Start wearing hearing aids as soon as necessary to prevent hearing from deteriorating rapidly,” he says, adding you should always wear hearing protection when exposed to noise or very loud sounds.
He also suggests wearing earplugs when swimming or exposing your ears to water.
Also read: Cataracts: what they are and how to treat them
Kruger says that you should not clean your ears with earbuds.
“This will only push the ear wax deeper into the ear canal and compact it against the eardrum and can cause pain and damage to the ear.”
He adds you should not use any over-the-counter wax removal treatments such as ear drops or wax candles.
Rather, use sweet oil only to soften hard ear wax and visit an ear, nose and throat specialist (ENT) to clean out the wax in a professional, safe manner.
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