Ringing in Your Ears

ARE YOU AT RISK FOR HEARING LOSS?

By Pamela Ferdinand

One of the best ways to protect your hearing is to limit noise exposure. Try to use disposable or custom-fitted earplugs or earmuffs in loud environments. At home, place rubber mats under noisy kitchen appliances and install storm windows to cut down on outside noise.

Do you find yourself asking friends and family to speak up, especially on the phone? Do they complain that you keep the television volume too high? Is it hard for you to hear doorbells or alarms? If you answered yes to any of these questions, you may have hearing loss.

Hearing loss is common as we grow older, and conditions such as noise and illness can make it worse. About 10 percent of people in the U.S. have some degree of hearing loss, including one in three people older than age 65. But the problem may be growing more common. Experts worry about an increase in hearing loss among young people, who frequently listen to personal electronic devices — including iPods and other MP3 players — at loud levels and for long periods of time, which can harm the ears.

Having difficulty hearing is a frustrating and serious condition that can affect your life and overall sense of well-being. Although most ear damage cannot be reversed, you can take some sensible steps to help preserve or even improve your hearing.

How Hearing Is Lost

Most hearing loss results from changes to a part of your ear called the inner ear. The inner ear contains the cochlea, whose tiny hair cells transmit sound vibrations as nerve signals to the brain. The brain translates those signals into the sounds we recognize every day.

Hearing loss starts in early adulthood and becomes more noticeable after age 50, but your hearing can be affected in other ways. You may have fluid behind the eardrum, a ruptured eardrum, wax buildup or a family disorder that affects your ears’ shape.

Hearing loss can also result when the hair cells and nerves in your inner ear are damaged by noise, medication, brain injury or illness. Heart disease, for example, can affect blood supply to the ear and change hearing. Certain medications, including some antibiotics and high doses of aspirin, have also been linked to hearing loss. And noise from loud engines, guns, power tools and even lawn mowers can lead to hearing loss on or off the job.

Loud music is also taking the blame for hearing loss in baby boomers and younger generations. In the 1970s, young people were warned that rock concerts could damage their ears. Nowadays, it’s portable music devices that are contributing to hearing loss.

Most MP3 players can produce sounds up to 120 decibels — just about as loud as an ambulance siren. While most people probably don’t listen to music at that level, listening to anything above about 90 decibels may cause some hearing loss. (By comparison, the level of normal conversation is around 60 decibels.)

If you use a portable music player, you may notice pressure or ringing in your ears when you switch off the sound. Those sensations go away and hearing returns to normal if enough healthy cells are left in your inner ear. But if you listen loud enough and long enough, you can permanently damage your ears.

Common Symptoms

At first, you may not realize you have hearing loss because it happens so slowly. Your brain adjusts and makes you think you are still hearing well.

But symptoms of hearing loss can range from ringing or other persistent noises in your ears to earaches, drainage and dizziness (because your inner ear also affects balance). It may become harder to hear high-pitched voices and tones. You may also have more difficulty understanding people in loud places, even those less than two feet away.

It’s not uncommon for people with hearing loss to begin to prefer staying at home, where it’s nice and quiet, says Lynne Davis, a clinical associate in audiology at Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary in Boston.

“We all have trouble hearing when it’s very noisy, but it’s having more difficulty than other people around you,” she says. “Hearing loss is tiring. You have to work to hear.”

Experts such as Davis say it’s important to consult your doctor if you or others suspect you have a hearing problem. Adults should be screened at least every decade through age 50 and every three years following that. You may be referred to an audiologist or an otologist/otolaryngologist, who specializes in ear care and hearing disorders.

Treatment options vary. Your doctor may remove wax buildup in your ears or recommend surgery or medication. Hearing aids, which come in a variety of shapes and sizes, are another option. Severe hearing loss may require a cochlear implant, which is an electronic device placed under the skin behind the ear.

Protect Your Hearing

One of the best ways to protect your hearing is to limit noise exposure. Try to use disposable or custom-fitted earplugs or earmuffs in loud environments. Place rubber mats under noisy kitchen appliances and install storm windows to reduce outside noise.

It’s a good idea to turn down the volume for music, too. It’s generally too loud if other people can hear your MP3 player or have to yell to be heard. If you can still hear people’s normal speaking voices, the volume is OK.

Back to Top