When you are younger it is usual to take your senses for granted. You breeze through life with perfect hearing and eyesight and give no thought to what life would be like if something should go wrong with them. As you get a little older, you start to realize that you have to look after your senses. The more you care for them, the better they will serve you as you reach midlife.

Here are some tips for looking after your eyesight and your hearing. Once they are damaged, the consequences could be more far reaching than you are aware of.

Looking after your hearing

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The main way that you can protect your hearing is to prevent it from being exposed to loud noises. This is most likely to happen at work. It is estimated that around 15% of Americans have some form of noise-induced hearing loss. This is nearly always caused by the work environment but leisure activities do play a role.

If your occupation involves any form of loud noise, your employer should carry out a risk assessment to determine what hazards you are exposed to. Your methods of working may need to be altered to reduce the risk. You should also be offered personal protective equipment such as ear defenders to protect the delicate structures inside the ears. Loud noises can cause permanent hearing loss. People who work with noisy machinery, vehicles and in the music industry are most at risk.

However, it is not just the workplace that causes the problem. You could be causing damage to your hearing at home. The World Health Organization has estimated that up to 1.1 billion teenagers and young adults worldwide are putting their hearing at risk when they use audio devices to listen to music and videos and to play games.

There is a simple rule for all age groups to protect their hearing. When you are using headphones, you should listen at no more than 60% of full volume for no more than 60 minutes a day. Over-the-ear headphones are safer than ear buds as they are further away from the eardrum. If you are hosting a party, you can help by keeping the volume at a level where people can have a conversation without shouting.

If you have started to notice a deterioration in your hearing, this is not something that you have to put up with. An Otofonix Elite hearing amplifier is an advanced open-fit behind the ear digital personal hearing amplifier. It is perfect for social situations where you struggle to understand soft speech and have difficulty hearing conversation above background noise.

Looking after your eyesight

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As you get older, protecting your eyesight is all about regular monitoring and being aware of what could go wrong. Find out about your family’s health history. If you have or are at risk of diabetes or high blood pressure then you may have an increased risk of sight-threatening eye diseases and you need to regularly be monitored.

If you start noticing any changes in your vision at all, you need to make an emergency appointment to see your doctor. Some symptoms such as double vision, hazy vision and difficulty seeing in low light conditions could be a sign of serious health conditions and need to be checked out. This is also true if you experience red eyes, frequent flashes of light or floaters (dark spots in your vision).

A healthy diet is vital for protecting your eyesight. It has been shown that antioxidants can reduce the risk of cataracts. You can get plenty of these in your diet by eating lots of fruit and colorful or dark green vegetables. You also need a diet rich in omega-3 fatty acids which you can get from oily fish such as salmon. Studies suggest that it can reduce your risk of developing macular degeneration.

One of the best things that you can do for your eyes is to give up smoking. Research has shown that people who smoke are much more likely to develop age-related macular degeneration and cataracts. The toxins in cigarette smoke are bad for all aspects of your health.

Eyes need protection from physical dangers too. Wear high-quality sunglasses to protect them from UV light. You should also always wear safety goggles or glasses when you are working with machinery or with anything that could fly towards your face and enter your eye. Where eye injuries are concerned, prevention is always better than cure.