Life is full of many demands, and sometimes it seems that it takes all our time and energy to respond to them.
Often we spend so much effort responding to life’s challenges that we lack time to nip them in the bud. This is especially true with regard to our hearing health.
Becoming proactive with your valuable hearing sense requires just a few small lifestyle changes. Make 2016 the year you take control of your hearing health. This could include many items, from watching your exposure to damaging noise to adding beneficial nutrients into your diet, to visiting Dr. Riso on a regular basis to check your hearing or having your hearing aids cleaned. 

A Proactive Hearing Health Checklist:

1. Put hearing checkups on your calendar.
Even if you currently don’t notice and indications of hearing loss, a scheduled hearing check-up should be on your list of important to-dos. Dr. Riso suggests an annual exam. Call us today to make an appointment.

2. Keep your hearing aids tuned up.
How long has it been since your hearing aids received a cleaning and tune-up?
Dr. Riso recommends no more than six months between a check and professional cleaning. It might also be a good time to review the effectiveness of your hearing equipment. Dr. Riso can tell you about any new advances in the field.

3. Monitor your diet and lifestyle.
Much research suggests a link between your diet and lifestyle habits (smoking, for instance) and your hearing health. Dr. Riso will counsel you on the link between your hearing health and your greater health status, and what you can do to keep your hearing healthy.

4. Watch out for damaging noise.
Harmful noise is all around us, often in unexpected places. Using power tools, lawn mowers, plug-in music earphones, and just being in the work environment can all present sound volumes which are loud enough to cause hearing damage. Protecting your ears is the best possible way to avoid hearing loss. Visit the Peninsula Hearing Center’s website to learn about our comfortable, custom earplugs.

5. Look for areas of improvement
Do certain hearing challenges occur with regularity? Maybe watching TV, or conversation in areas of ambient noise? Does phone communication pose difficulties? Do you find your mind working overtime, filling in the blanks in conversation? If you have challenges in certain situations or with some electronic devices, we have a selection of assistive listening devices available to help fill in the gaps where your ears fail. Make an appoint with us and find out more.