Protect Your Hearing Or It Will Cost You (A Cautionary Tale)

My mother, who is in her 80s, has been progressively losing her hearing over the last 10 years. It’s gotten really bad over the last 3 years. Despite my constant prodding, she’s refused to admit she had a problem, instead blaming people for not talking loud enough, or the TV being too quiet, to name a few examples.

But, within the last two months, she’s developed a loud hum and buzz in her ears, which she attributed to the furnace, the refrigerator – well, anything but her own ears. I knew that it was tinnitus but my mother would not listen to reason. She even had her furnace fan replaced – despite the fact that her furnace was only two years old – as she was convinced that it was the fan that was making the buzzing noise. (Let’s not even go into the issue that the furnace repair guy just went ahead and replaced it even though he KNEW it wasn’t a problem). She insisted that her doctor never felt her hearing was a problem. Even though she sees him every 6 months and has done so for years, either she’s never complained to him in the past or he is incompetent (or both).   After her last doctor appointment where he did make sure her ears were clean – and when it didn’t make the humming noise go away – she finally admitted to me that  she had a problem.

The good news is I got her in for a hearing exam. The bad news is she has significant hearing loss. The really bad news is that the hearing aids will cost almost $5,000. Yes, you read that right - $5,000. These are digital hearing aids and she was able to test them in the office and the improvement was amazing. While I am sure it will take some time to get used to used to hearing things again, I am sure that it will improve her life immensely.

I learned something new in this process – hearing loss is a serious thing and should not be ignored. When the ear can’t transmit all the sounds it should be hearing to the brain, the brain actually can “forget” those sounds, and those sounds likely can never come back. (It’s called auditory deprivation.) By my mother waiting so long to do anything about her hearing problem, even with hearing aids she may never regain all hearing.

I also learned that correcting a hearing problem can be costly. While the technology has greatly improved over the years, there is a high cost associated with it. Even the low end hearing aids are expensive. They are also not covered by Medicare and most insurances don’t pay for them (or only pay a tiny part of the cost). Most people need them as they age, and that usually coincides with a time that most people are living on a retirement income.

Many people don’t think twice about their hearing – it’s just something that is there and as it usually diminishes gradually with age, the loss may not be noticeable at first. But it is something that requires serious thought NOW, while a person is young. Here’s my sage advice:

1. Think twice before you stick those headphones/ear buds on or in your ears. This is amplified sound that is going straight into your ear canal and it often louder than you would listen to music normally. Nothing can damage your hearing faster than loud music blaring in your ears. Learn to turn down the volume.

2. When using loud equipment (such as a lawnmower, leaf blower, chain saw, etc.) be sure to wear ear protection. (Eye protection is also a must but that’s another story.) You may not think the sound is too loud, but believe me your ears can and will be damaged. Even hair blow dryers can be too loud and earplugs can help minimize that noise as well.

3. Don’t wait to have your hearing checked. If a friend or family member remarks to you that they think you have a problem, don’t ignore them. Get your hearing tested immediately; many hearing aid companies will do it for free.

4. Plan for the expense as you age. All that money you’re spending on the latest iPods and iPhones pales in comparison to the cost of a pair of hearing aids that you’ll likely need a lot earlier in life because your using ear buds to blast loud music into your ears. Yes, it’s nice to have the newest shiniest technology of the day, but you’ll wish you had some of that money as you age.


Don’t take your hearing for granted. If you do, it will cost you more ways than one – your ability to hear AND in your wallet!

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Newsflash: Everything Causes Cancer

Yesterday’s big news story from the World Health Organization that cell phones can cause cancer rattled many who use cell phones, whether they are heavy users or not.

That same story also is causing some cancer warning fatigue. After all, it seems every week or so there is a news story that something causes cancer. Sometimes organizations disagree on whether something causes cancer.

My conclusion is that anything done to excess will cause cancer. For example, if you eat too much, drink too much, or smoke too much, you’re asking for trouble. Travel by air a lot? You may be exposing yourself to too much radiation. Eat too many non-organic foods and the pesticides may give you cancer. Drink too much coffee, tea, acidic drinks and maybe you’ll get stomach or esophageal cancer. I could go on and on with all the cancer causers we’ve been exposed to over the years.

As electronics proliferate, and things that use wireless signals continue to increase in use, this may be the next thing that will be a cancer risk. Suggestions to use Bluetooth devices instead of putting a cell phone up to your ear doesn't seem like much of a solution to me unless someone can prove those devices right in your ear also won’t also cause cancer.

Living your life living under a rock isn’t the answer either, as rocks can emit radon gases which can also cause cancer. Yes, the living under a rock comment was meant as a joke, but the radon gas thing is not.

I am convinced that no one really has the answer for what causes cancer, whether it be one thing or a combination of things.   My oldest sister developed bone cancer in the late 1960s when she was 16 years old, and she died at 17. She had no cell phones, she didn’t smoke, drink, or eat too much. She didn’t drink coffee or tea or lots of pop/soda. At the time, the doctors said they were working on understanding what causes cancer. It's now over 40 years later and I think that medicine is still making educated guesses.

So it seems the best thing people can do to avoid cancer is to simply not overdo it with anything. Eat healthy, exercise, don’t smoke or don’t drink alcohol in excess, and get off those cell phones and get more face time with your contacts!

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Love DVRs, Hate the Picture Freeze and Lockups

One of the best things to happen for lovers of television is the DVR. One of the worst thinks to happen to lovers of television is the DVR. How can it be both?

The answer is simple, DVRs allow viewers to easily digitally record television shows, in most cases more than one show at a time, and to play them back at will. But the downside to DVRs is that they are subject to lockup and freezing at inopportune moments, which can cause not only the show you’re recording to lose transmission but also whatever you happen to be watching. Nothing is more annoying than having your DVR display a black screen when you change the channel because the HD signal is corrupted or the DVR just can process the command. A few weeks ago, there was a major glitch with Time Warner in northern Ohio which caused the picture to jump and juggle and then disappear, not just once, but multiple times within a broadcast. (TVs not using a DVR or cable box were not affected.)  Time Warner promised credit – but only to those who contacted Time Warner to ask for it. Personally, I think Time Warner should have credited everyone for the  4-5 days of transmission problems; they know very well the problem was widespread.

But, back to DVRs. Serious consideration should be given to improving the dependability of these devices. It takes very little to cause then to become “confused” and to lock up. They also are horribly slow at times to respond to changing a channel, not to mention the length of time it takes them to reboot. My DVR is the newest model that Time Warner can offer at it is still awful at times. If I wasn’t paying an arm and a leg for Time Warner Cable, I wouldn’t be complaining. (I should clarify this is problem is not limited to Time Warner.) When I was a kid, watching television was free and we only had 3-4 channels that we needed “rabbit ears” or outside antennas to get a signal, and recording a TV show to watch later was virtually impossible for most. Now we have hundreds of channels, lovely HD pictures, and we can record and play back whenever we want. Yet sometimes those DVRs and cable boxes are no better than those rabbit ears.


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Stop Driving While Texting, Phoning

It seems a daily occurrence lately when one hears about a vehicle accident – car, bus, train – where an accident occurred because someone was talking on his or her cell phone and/or texting while driving.

I am tired of driving behind or next to someone who is driving 50 miles per hour on a 65 mph stretch of freeway because they have one hand on the wheel, the other on their phone/BlackBerry, their eyes not on the road, and their vehicle not clearly in their lane.

Some communities are making it illegal to talk on a cell phone (unless it’s hands free) or to text while driving. This is a worthless endeavor, since the person has to be caught in the act, and really won’t prevent anyone from not doing it while there isn’t a police car driving right nearby.

Cell phones and BlackBerries are nice tools that can help people become more efficient in their jobs and stay in touch, but really, one CAN put them down for a while. There is no excuse for someone whose job is a train or bus driver to be texting – it’s just not part of their job. People who travel by car for their jobs should either check their messages before they leave or wait until they can stop their car.

Maybe what we need for cell phones and BlackBerries is something like what we do for young kids when driving in a car – strap them into the back seat while we are driving. I am just kidding, of course, but if people can’t keep cell phones out of their hands for more than a few minutes, then maybe someone has to force it out of their hands.

By the way, if you’re so busy that you can’t put down that cell phone or BlackBerry down while you’re driving, you are a slave to technology and you need to get a real life. Seriously.


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