{"id":92832,"date":"2024-11-01T20:05:14","date_gmt":"2024-11-01T18:05:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/?p=92832"},"modified":"2024-11-01T20:05:14","modified_gmt":"2024-11-01T18:05:14","slug":"ear-health-the-hidden-risks-of-everyday-ear-habits","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/ear-health-the-hidden-risks-of-everyday-ear-habits\/","title":{"rendered":"Ear Health: The Hidden Risks of Everyday Ear Habits"},"content":{"rendered":"

Neelam Rahim | neelam@radioislam.co.za<\/a><\/p>\n

3-minute read
\n01 November 2024 |18:00 CAT<\/p>\n

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Protect your ears: Audiologist warns against risky habits with earbuds and everyday items.<\/p><\/div>\n

Our ears are an essential part of our daily lives, connecting us to the world in ways often taken for granted. However, many overlook the potential risks to ear health from seemingly harmless habits. Audiologist Fatima Ismail recently shared insights with Radio Islam International<\/a> on the dos and don\u2019ts of ear care, emphasising common practices like using earbuds, inserting foreign objects, and prolonged use of earphones.<\/p>\n

According to Ismail, inserting objects into the ear, even routine items like earbuds or the end of a pen, can lead to serious damage. “The ear is a confined space, and the tympanic membrane, or eardrum, is delicate. Perforating this membrane can lead to infections, hearing loss, and lasting consequences,” Ismail warns. She advocates a preventative approach, stating that “nothing should be going into the ear.”<\/p>\n

One frequent cause of ear infections is swimmer\u2019s ear, or otitis externa, which occurs when bacteria thrive in trapped moisture within the ear canal. “It\u2019s not just swimming that poses a risk; even showering can lead to infections if water becomes trapped,” she adds, highlighting the importance of ensuring the ear canal is dry.<\/p>\n

The rise of modern ear devices like noise-cancelling headphones and in-ear earbuds has also raised new health concerns. Prolonged use of these gadgets can interfere with the ear\u2019s self-cleaning process, leading to wax buildup and providing a gateway for bacteria. “Many people don\u2019t clean their earbuds regularly, and bacteria from the uncleaned devices can flourish once inside the ear canal,” explains Ismail\u2014her advice: clean earbuds daily with an alcohol swab to minimize bacterial risks.<\/p>\n

Ismail stresses the importance of volume control when using ear devices, promoting the \u201c60-60 rule,\u201d which limits volume to 60% of the device\u2019s maximum capacity. She cautions that noise-induced hearing loss, particularly from loud volumes, is irreversible: “Damage from blasting music directly into the ears is long-term.”<\/p>\n

For those wearing ear devices all day, Ismail suggests opting for over-ear headphones, which reduce the risk of bacterial contamination and allow for better ear health management. Her final reminder encourages responsible use: “We may live in an age of modern gadgets, but their responsible use is essential to preserve our ear health.”<\/p>\n

Listen here<\/a> to the full interview on Sabahul Muslim with Moulana Sulaimaan Ravat and Audiologist Fatima Ismail.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Neelam Rahim | neelam@radioislam.co.za 3-minute read 01 November 2024 |18:00 CAT Our ears are an essential part of our daily lives, connecting us to the world in ways often taken for granted. However, many overlook the potential risks to ear health from seemingly harmless habits. Audiologist Fatima Ismail recently shared insights with Radio Islam International […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":29,"featured_media":92833,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[132,5453],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-92832","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-opinion-and-analysis","category-social"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/images.jpeg?fit=275%2C183&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pc0QIf-o9i","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-04-20 17:18:58","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/92832","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/29"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=92832"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/92832\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/92833"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=92832"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=92832"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=92832"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}