WHAT?

If your kid thinks it's cool to listen to his iPod at full blast, or to have her ears ringing after a Justin Bieber concert, it's time to speak up about the dangers. nearly half of the 2,500 respondents in a 2010 mtv.com survey said they listened to MP3 players at 75 to 100 percent of their maximum volume. Nearly half also said they experienced symptoms of hearing loss (ringing in the ears, trouble hearing, ear pain from loud noise) but only 32 percent said the considered it a problem.

"Hearing loss is so prevalent that it has become the norm," says study author Roland Eavey, M.D., director of the Vanderbilt Bill Wilkerson Center. "Parents need to tell kids to protect their ears, just as they tell them to wear helmets and sunscreen." A good gauge and house rule: if you can hear the music your child is listening to on his MP3 player, it's too loud. Also consider nipping the problem in the earbud with healthy headphone options. like volume-reducing earphones (we have some available in our office for $19.99 plus tax).  They make great stocking stuffers!

Why You Should NOT Clean Your Ears with a Cotton Swab

There are some people that swear by sticking a cotton swab (Q-Tip) into their ears to remove excess wax and debris. Anyone in the medical field can tell you that they have seen many catastrophes resulting from using cotton swabs. From punctured ear drums to super impacted wax, there are many negative consequences associated with "do-it-yourself" ear cleaning.

There are a number of "bad" items that people use to clean their ears, some of the most interesting seen in the doctor's office are:

• cotton swabs (q-tips)
• hair pins
• tweezers
• pens and pencils
• straws
• paper clips
• children's toys

The ear canal has specialized cells that produce cerumen, commonly known as ear wax. For some people, ear wax accumulates must faster than others. This can lead to wax build-up that causes decreased ability to hear and ni some instances, pain.  As an easy way to avoid seeing a medical professional, many folks resort to using swabs to remove the excess wax. while this may seem like an excellent alternative to spending countless minutes waiting in a doctor's office waiting room, using a cotton swab may do more harm than good.

The ear drum is easily reached with a swab. Because the ear drum is so delicate, it can be easily ruptured by using even the gentlest pressure when using a swab. Ask anyone who has experienced a punctured ear drum - it isn't a pleasant experience. The pain is quite severe and the ear may also leak a clear fluid.  While a punctured ear rum will heal, it typically takes awhile and can even lead to conductive hearing loss.

So this leaves us with the question, do we really need to clean out our ears? The answer is a little confusing, as both a "yes" and a "no" are appropriate.  The outer ear that can be sen does need a good cleaning every now and then. This can be accomplished with a little soap, water and a washcloth.

In most cases, the ear canal does not need to be cleaned. During hair washing or showers, enough water enters into the ear canal to loosen the wax that has accumulated. Additionally, the skin in your ear canal naturally grows in an outward, spiral pattern. As it sloughs off, ear wax goes with it. most of the time the wax will loosen and fall out on its own while you are asleep. The need for a cotton swab isn't really necessary.

For those that have heavy wax build-up, a trip to the doctor may be needed. Doctors can easily remove ear wax in various ways.  Never stick anything into your ear canal, including your own fingers. This could further impact the wax or damage the ear drum. As a good rue of thumb, if you aren't  sure if what you are doing is safe, contact a health professional.

Noise and Hearing Loss

What is noise induced hearing loss?
When exposed to harmful impulse noise or loud sounds over a prolonged period, sensitive structures in our inner ear can be damaged causing noise induced hearing loss (NIHL). These sensitive structures, called hair cells, are small sensory cells in the inner ear that convert sound energy into electrical signals that travel tot he rain. Once damaged, hair cells cannot grow back. Recent studies have shown that exposure to harmful noise triggers the formation of molecules inside the ear that can damage or kill hair cells.

How much noise is too much?
Sounds louder than 85 decibels (dB) can damage your ears. A decibel is a unit that measures the intensity of sound on a scale from 0 to 150. a normal conversation is about 45 dB. Jack hammers and dump trucks ring in at over 100dB and mp3 players can exceed 120dB!

What are the affects of NIHL?
Exposure to harmful sounds causes damage to the hair cells as well as the auditory, or hearing, nerve. Impulse sound can result in immediate hearing loss that may be permanent. This kind of hearing loss may be accompanied by tinnitus,  a ringing, buzzing or roaring in the ears or head, which may subside over time. Hearing loss and tinnitus may be experienced in one or both ears, and tinnitus may continue constantly or occasionally throughout a lifetime.

The Wonders of the Cucumber!

(this is just fun, absolutely not hearing related at all!)

The information was found in the New York Times several years ago as part of their "Spotlight the Home" series that highlighted creative and fanciful ways to solve common problems.

1. cucumbers contain most of the vitamins you need every day, just one cucumber contains Vitamin B1, Vitamin B2, Vitamin B3, Vitamin B5, Vitamin B6, Folic Acid, Vitamin C, Calcium, Iron, magnesium, Phosphorus, Potassium and Zinc!

2. Feeling tired in the afternoon, put down the caffeinated soda and pick up a cucumber. cucumbers are a good source of B Vitamins and Carbohydrates that can provide that quick pick-me-up that can last for hours.

3. Tired of your bathroom mirror fogging up after a shower? Try rubbing a cucumber slice along the mirror, it will eliminate the fog and provide a soothing, spa-like fragrance.

4. Are grubs and slugs ruining your planting beds? Place a few slices of cucumber in a small pie tin and your garden will be free of pests all season long. The chemicals i the cucumber react with the aluminum to give off a scent undetectable to humans but drive garden pests crazy and make them flee the area.

5. Looking for a fast and easy way to remove cellulite before going out or to the pool? Try rubbing a slice or two of cucumbers along your problem area for a few minutes, the phytochemicals in the cucumber cause the collagen in your skin to tighten, firming up the outer layer and reducing the visibility of cellulite.  Works great on wrinkles to!.

6. Want to avoid a hangover or terrible headache? Eat a few cucumber slices before going to bed and wake up refreshed and headache free.  Cucumbers contain enough sugar, B vitamins and electrolytes to replenish essential nutrients the body lost, keeping everything in equilibrium, avoiding both a hangover and a headache!

7. Looking to fight off that afternoon and evening snacking binge? Cucumbers have been used for centuries and often used by European trappers, traders and explorers for quick meals to thwart of starvation.

8. Have an important meeting or job interview and you realize that you don't have enough time to polish your shoes? Rub a freshly cut cucumber over the shoe, its chemicals will provide a quick and durable shine that not only looks great but also repels water.

9. Out of WD40 and need to fix a squeaky hinge? Take a cucumber slice and rub it along the problematic hinge, and voila! The squeak is gone!

10. Stressed out and don't have time for a massage, facial or visit to the salon? Cut up and entire cucumber and place it in a boiling pot of water. The chemicals and nutrients from the cucumber will react with the boiling water and be released in the steam, creating a soothing, relaxing aroma that has been shown to reduce stress in new mothers and college students during final exams.

11. Looking for a "green" way to clean your faucets, sinks or stainless steel? Take a slice of cucumber and rub it on the surface you want to clean, not only will it remove years of tarnish and bring back the shine, but it won't leave streaks and won't harm your fingers or fingernails while you clean.

12. Using a pen and made a mistake? Take the outside of the cucumber ad slowly use it to erase the pen writing, also works great on crayons and markers that the kids have used to decorate the walls!

Two Ears ARE Better than One

Being able to hear with both ears is just as important as being able to see with both eyes. If you have difficulty hearing with both ears, you will almost certainly benefit from a binaural fitting - that is, wearing a hearing instrument in each ear.

The most important benefits of wearing two hearing instruments are:

• your ability to localize sounds will improve
• it will be easier to understand speech in noisy surroundings
• the risk of "auditory deprivation" is considerably reduced
• you will experience a fuller, more comfortable sound

Why do people have 2 ears? Because the brain needs input from both ears to tell us which direction sounds are coming from. Think about a car honking its horn, for example. Our ears alert us to the danger, sending sound signals to the brain. Within a split second the brain compares the information received from both ears - such as the power and intensity of the sound wave, and how long it to reach each ear. This tells us instantly which direction the care is coming from, and how far away it is.

Background noise makes it difficult to follow what people are saying. For people who don't hear equally well with both ears, it suddenly becomes much harder to separate individual voices from background noise. The brain needs input from both ears in order to separate sounds effectively.

Another risk that is significantly reduced by wearing two hearing aids is the risk of auditory deprivation. This is when the brain gradually loses some of its ability to process information from the unaided ear because of a continued lack of sound stimulation. Auditory deprivation most often occurs when the ear goes unaided over a long period of time - so the earlier you consider wearing two hearing instruments, the better your chances are of minimizing this risk.

If you hear equally well with both ears, sounds are more comfortable to listen to. You don't have to strain to hear, and sounds have the kind of clarity and depth which give you a sense of space and volume. Imagine listening to your favorite program on the stereo. It has two amplifiers and two speakers, to give music and speech a natural depth. However, if only one amplifier and speaker is working, the sounds become shallow and flat.