Good ear & hearing care habits
Dr. Shelly Khanna Chadha
We have five special senses, that allow us to perform certain very unique functions. We see, we hear, we feel, we taste and we smell, with the help of these special senses. The one thing that sets humans apart from the rest of the animal kingdom is our ability to communicate with our fellow beings in a meaningful manner. Our ears are an important part of our communication system and it is important to care for our ears, just as we care for any other part of our body.
The first thing to understand is that our ears are self cleaning organs. The outer part of the canal is lined by hair bearing skin. The purpose of these hairs is to capture dirt etc that is on the way into the ears. Moreover, the skin of the ear canal contains Ceruminous glands. These glands secrete Cerumen, which is a sticky substance and commonly known as Wax. Whatever dead cells are shed by the skin or the dirt that reaches into the canal adheres to the cerumen and is brought out of the canal by the normal process of migration of the ear canal mucosa. Hence, the ear canal, is kept naturally clean.
Certain persons accumulate wax in the ears and this may be due to one of two causes:
Excessive cerumen secretion by the glands within the canal.
Narrow canal leading to improper or inadequate migration of the wax out of the ear canals.
This can lead to excessive wax accumulation.
The wax accumulating within the canal also dries up and becomes hard. This may lead to feeling of blockage in the ear, or to pain and sometimes hearing loss. Sometimes, our efforts to clean out the wax from the ear, may also cause trauma to the delicate skin of the ear canal and may even lead to infection.
The various things that are likely to damage our ears include:
- Any external objects/substances inserted/instilled into the ears
- Trauma or injury over the ears, such as slap or blow etc
- Entry of dirty water into the ears.
- Exposure to loud sounds
- Untreated infections
What are the good practices that can help us to have good ear & hearing Health:
Never try to clean out the ear on your own using any kind of object or instrument
Never insert anything into your ear
You may damage the Ear drum or the skin of the Outer ear canal leading to infection
Do not instil oil or any other liquid into your ears unless advised by a doctor: this can lead to infection.
Never go to road side quacks/unqualified person for cleaning of the ear:
This can have grave consequences
Continuous exposure to loud sounds can be very damaging to the hearing:
Continuous exposure to loud sounds such as factory noise, traffic noise, loud music etc will slowly, but surely affect the hearing and lead to Permanent hearing loss over a period.
Continuous exposure to loud sounds can be very damaging to the hearing:
Continuous exposure to loud sounds such as factory noise, traffic noise, loud music etc will slowly, but surely affect the hearing and lead to Permanent hearing loss over a period.
Always feed a baby with the head slightly raised:
Two short tubes connect the nasopharynx (space behind the nose) to the ears. They are known as the Eustachian tubes.
In a young child, these tubes are shorter, straighter and wider. When a child is fed in a lying down position, the milk may flow into the nasopharynx and can enter the ear through the Eustachian tubes. This predisposes the child to infection of the ear. This can be avoided by following the correct feeding posture.
Avoid swimming/bathing in dirty water:
entry of dirty water into the ear is a source of infection. It can lead to bacterial or fungal infection.
If your child is inattentive and doest listen to you, get his hearing tested:
The inattentiveness could be due to hearing loss. Get it checked immediately, so that proper treatment can be undertaken
Do not ignore pain in the ear:
Pain in the ear may indicate a serious infection. Untreated, this infection could lead to rupture of the eardrum. Always consult a doctor in case of acute ear pain.
Hearing check up is very easy.
If you feel your child cant hear well, take for a check up immediately
Get your ears checked once in a year to ensure their good health
In case of any ear problem such as pain,discharge, itching, blockage, hearing loss contact a qualified doctor.
If required, get the ears cleaned only by a qualified doctor.
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