Hearing loss is permanent, so if you know that you already have hearing loss, it’s a great idea to prevent further hearing damage.
Did you know you can do “workouts” to strengthen your hearing skills and help prevent further loss? Here are five simple ways.
Get Moving!
When you keep blood circulating by staying active all day long, you benefit to your ears as well as the rest of your body!
As long as you do it daily, even light exercise like walking is great. Cycling, jogging and swimming can also help get your heart pumping. Pilates, yoga and other stretching exercises will also boost circulation and your health. You may also know from experience that chores like housework and gardening can get your heart pumping too!
Many people love exercising to music, so if that’s you, try remembering to lower the volume, especially if you use ear buds. Since noise-induced hearing damage is the most common type and music is often a culprit, this will help prevent hearing loss as well.
Stretch it Out
Stretching exercises and deep breathing can also help with hearing.
We have all heard that yoga has health benefits, and it can also strengthen hearing by increasing circulation to your ears! The stretching and deep breathing are a light effort and qualify as exercise! Increased blood flow allows your body to efficiently detoxify, and that improves nerve function. All of these things are good and will contribute to a strong hearing ability.
Play Games!
Which organ plays the biggest role in hearing?
Did you say your ears?
Wrong!
When it comes to listening comprehension and hearing, your brain is the heavy lifter. Your ears physically bring sound in, like sound funnels, but your brain interprets and makes those sounds understandable. So, anything you can do to workout your brain will also impact your hearing ability.
The brain needs exercise just as much as the rest of your body does! Puzzles, games and riddles are fun and are also brain exercises that strengthens your brain’s connections, combating atrophy. Dementia is the eventual result of brain atrophy, so we must avoid that at all cost.
The good news is that any game will work:hearts, poker and bingo are all exercise for your brain and are also really fun!
Focus
Your audiologist may also be able to recommend some great hearing exercises, and they can be found online as well. These exercises not only improve hearing ability and help you to distinguish sounds, they can serve as great brain stimulators as well.
Here’s one workout that can aid in focus and encourage hearing in a noisy environment:
Turn the radio or TV so it is clearly audible. Then turn on another competing noise (like music). Ask a friend or family member to walk around the room and read from a book or magazine. Close your eyes and repeat the sentences they read. Also picture where the other person is in the room. This exercise can help tremendously with focus in a noisy environment.
Concentrate on Sounds
One more exercise that you can do when you are alone in public: close your eyes and listen. Think about the noises around you and recognize the sounds: pinpoint each sound’s location. This workout will help your brain translate noises and refine your focus.
Annual hearing screenings are also highly recommended. Reach out to your audiologist today—regular hearing evaluations are quick and painless and will give you a good idea if there has been any hearing damage so far. The earlier hearing loss is diagnosed, the better you can deal with it and prevent further loss.
We’ve served San Jose and the Bay Area for over 20 years, providing the right solution for Your Life. Your Style.
The information provided in this article is not meant to be medical advice and is for educational purposes only. If you would like to learn more about this and other topics related to audiology, feel free to contact Los Gatos Audiology, with a convenient hearing center located in Los Gatos, CA, by clicking here or by calling 408.703.0772.
You are invited to attend our Listen Up Café!
Listen Up Café, Friday, September 13, 2019 from 10 am -12 pm
We’ll be discussing Alzheimers and the connection of hearing health and brain health.
RSVP by calling us at 408.290.1279 to reserve your spot! We’ll have light refreshments and a great discussion—see you there!
Los Gatos Audiology – 15899 Los Gatos-Almaden Rd. Suite 8, Los Gatos, CA 95032 (on the corner of National and Los Gatos-Almaden Rd.) www.losgatosaudiology.