The Hearing Fix
An Effective Hearing Loss Treatment

Hearing Loss: Addressing a Problem

Your mother always said that if you listen to music too loudly, then you would have hearing loss.  Unfortunately, we don’t always listen to our mothers, and we end up dealing with the consequences later on.

Now your mother may not have been a doctor, but there were mountains of wisdom in those words.  It is not uncommon to find ourselves in loud situations that damage our ears, which is one of the main reasons why many adults suffer from hearing loss later on in life.

Hearing loss has the potential to bring our busy lives to a screeching halt.  It has the potential to destroy livelihoods and quality of life.  It can make the simplest of tasks extremely challenging, and it can lead to frustration.  That is why it is very important to address what causes hearing impairment, so that we can find ways to deal with those causes when they pop up. 

Dealing with hearing loss later on is no picnic, and it is much better to stop hearing problems before they take place.  If you know the causes for hearing loss, then you will be able to prepare a head of time.

Loud Noises: Wearing Out Your Ears

Noise-Induced Hearing Loss, otherwise known as NIHL is the most common form, and is often experienced by people living in cities or folks who work in loud environments, such as woodshops.

Basically, NIHL occurs when the individual is exposed to an extremely loud noise instantly or gradual loud noises over time.  This can result in the ringing of the ears, or the muffling of sounds.

The first immediate cause happens often during an explosion or concussion of some kind.  In essences, the sound waves travel into the ear, and disrupt small sensory cells that are like hair.  These hairs convert sound waves into signals that travel to the brain for interpretation.

In the event of an explosion, the loudness can place far too much strain on the fragile receptors, resulting in hearing loss that can happen in an instant.

Another cause is loud sounds over time.  This occurs when you work in a construction zone, woodshop, lumberyard, and even play in a band.

In order to figure out if a sound will damage the inner ear over time, it is important to understand decibel ratings.  For instance, the hum of a kitchen appliance or a washing machine is only 45 decibels.  The traffic during rush hour in a city can go all the way up to 85 decibels.  Fireworks, gunshots, and even motorcycles can produce decibels from 130 to 140.  Over time, prolonged exposure to constant or bursting, high-decibel sounds of around 85 can cause hearing loss.  If you are in these environments on a regular basis, it is very important that you wear hearing protection, because you will most certainly develop hearing problems later on. 

One good indicator if you are at risk for NIHL is if you hear ringing in your ears after you leave the loud environment.  If you do, then tinnitus has set in, and those tiny receptors in your ears may already be slightly damaged.

Medications and Hearing Problems

There are some types of medications that can cause problems over time.  While these may only be listed as side effects, it is important to talk to your physician about the possible effects of some of your medications.  If you have a family history of hearing impairment, then it is crucial that your doctor knows.

Certain medications that have been known to cause hearing loss are called ototoxic.  These medications can come in the form of Aspirin, and even certain antibiotics like Neomycin.  Some of these medications simply cause the inner parts of the ears and even the fragile receptor hairs to deteriorate over time.  If you are taking these medications on a regular basis, and you do have familial hearing problems, then be sure to consult your doctor, and he or she may prescribe you something else.

Physical Injuries

In the event of a physical injury where there was head trauma, the possibility of hearing loss can occur.  It is not uncommon to see those with traumatic brain injuries will have future hearing loss, as there is a direct link.  Often times, the injury itself will cause a puncture in the eardrum or a small imbalance in the inner ear.  Both of these scenarios have the capacity to destroy hearing, either over time or immediately.  If you have had a catastrophic head injury from a traumatic event, such as a car accident, then you should seek help.

Autoimmune Inner Ear Disease

This particular disease is treatable if it is caught on time.  Often, AIED has a tendency to be hereditary related for contraction, so if you have a family history of AIED, then be sure to get regular checkups. 

AIED is one of the most common causes of hearing problems, as it affects over 28 million Americans.  It is not uncommon to watch this problem destroy hearing very quickly.

This disease can completely eliminate hearing in a matter of weeks or months, and the process not drawn out.

Autoimmune Inner Ear Disease happens when the body mistakes the person’s inner ear cells for bacteria.  When this occurs, the body sends anti-bodies to wipe what it thinks is an infection.  Basically, the body’s own defenses destroys the inner ear.

When this occurs, the symptoms are relatively pronounced.  For instance, ones AIED begins to take effect, the patient will experience a rather sudden loss of hearing in one ear, and a gradual loss of hearing in the other.  Also, during this time, the patient will hear a hissing, ringing, or even roaring sound.

This type of hearing loss is treatable, if caught early on.  There are a few known surgical procedures and medications that can stave off hearing problems, so if you are experiencing AIED, then be sure to go to your physician or even a hospital immediately.

Presbycusis

Presbycusis is another type of hearing loss that occurs in many people later on in life.  This particular disease is somewhat known to be rather naturally occurring, as its causes are only found to be that off the inner ear wearing out over time.  As cells break down, so does normal body function and that of the receptors in the ear.

This disease is somewhat treatable, but it usually occurs gradually.  As the ear becomes less receptive to certain pitches, understanding speech becomes difficult.  Certain phrases and sounds that certain words make become indiscernible, because they utilize high pitch noises.  The sounds from the letter “t” “s” and even “k” can become muffled, resulting in confusion.

In essence, Presbycusis is the result of older ears, and will usually be remedied by hearing aids.

Other Possible Problems

If you are finding that you are gradually losing your hearing, or that you’ve lost your hearing quickly, there might be a different problem than one that we listed here.  There are many diseases that can lead to hearing loss, so it is important that you contact your physician if something in your ears have changed.

Of course, a simple ear infection from a cold or a change in air pressure may cause a temporary decrease in hearing capacity, but these are minimal risk issues.  The rule of thumb is that if you find that your hearing has decreased significantly over the course of about a week, then you should talk with your physician, just to see if there is a potential problem.

Hearing Loss Overview

While we might not have gone over every cause or symptom of hearing loss, this was a general cross section of the potential causes.  The fact is that millions of Americans every year deals with hearing problems, as this is what happens when our ears come into contact with every day situations. 

There are many situations that can lead to gradual hearing loss such as walking by a jackhammer every day to work, or going to a loud concert once a month.

The best thing for you to do is understand the causes of hearing loss, and take steps in order to stop it from taking place. 

Be sure to talk to your doctor about your concerns and risks associated with them.  If you live or work in loud environments, you may want to invest in hearing protection.  Especially for working environments, there are mechanical hearing protectors that fit in the ears, and close up when the decibels reach a certain point. These can be found for less than $15 at a gun store.

Also, if you have a family history of hearing loss, then be sure to let your doctor know if you are taking certain antibiotics or on an Aspirin regimen.

There are lots of things you can do to protect your hearing, and your ears depend on your situational awareness of loud noises.