Many people associate ageing with hearing loss. But, you don’t have to lose your hearing as you age. If you want to lower your risk of developing age-related hearing loss, known as presbycusis, it’s simple: Reduce your exposure to loud sounds.

Hearing loss in older adults is usually caused by changes in the inner/middle ear and the nerve pathways. It can also be caused by long-term exposure to sounds above 80 to 85 decibels (dB) – such as sounds produced by a lawn mower or heavy traffic – which can permanently damage the sensory hair cells in your inner ear. A normal conversation is about 60-65 dB.

Other causes of age-related hearing loss include high blood pressure and diabetes, and medications such as aspirin, antibiotics, and chemotherapy drugs.

You know the sound is harmfully loud if you experience the following:

• Your ears hurt

• There’s ringing (tinnitus) in your ears

• Your hearing feels dull and muffled

How to protect yourself from hearing loss:

Limit use of headphones
If you enjoy listening to music through headphones, make sure you limit your listening time to an hour a day. Also, do keep the volume down to a level that allows you to hear external sounds. As a guide, someone standing next to you should not be able to hear the music from your headphones.

Wear ear plugs at a concert
Prolonged exposure to loud music at a concert where the sound level can be over 110 dB is harmful to your ears. Wearing ear plugs or ear muffs, which can reduce the sound by 15 to 35 dB, or taking a 10-minute break from the music, can help.

Turn down the volume of your TV/music player
You know the volume of your TV or music player at home is too loud if you can’t hold a normal conversation with other people in the room, or if you have to shout to be heard. So turn the volume down!