According to the World Health Organization (WHO), overuse of headphones and Bluetooth devices is a major cause of the 100 crore or so people who suffer from hearing issues worldwide. Chronic ear conditions and noise pollution are also important factors. WHO has declared March 3rd to be World Hearing Day to address this problem and promote ear and hearing care throughout the world.

The Association of Otolaryngologists of India (AOI) organized a press conference at the Press Club Kolkata to commemorate this occasion. Dr. Dwaipayan Mukherjee, National President of the Association, Dr. Utpal Jana, President AOI WB, Dr. Ajoy Kumar Khawas, Secretary AOI West Bengal, and Dr. Snehashis Barman, treasurer AOI West Bengal graced the press conference.

The majority of hearing issues are now being treated with the newest, most advanced technology. However, the general public is too aware of these facts.

Dr. Dwaipayan Mukherjee, National President of the All India ENT Doctors Association, or AOI said “Raising social awareness is the main goal. Hearing is crucial to our existence and is very hard to restore if it is impaired. Restoring natural hearing ability with a cochlear implant or hearing aid is extremely challenging. Therefore, it’s crucial to maintain good hearing hygiene for everyone, not just kids. One of the primary causes of audio issues or hearing loss is excessive headphone use. Avoid using headphones. If at all possible, limit your daily usage to no more than two hours.  If not, the auditory nerve might be harmed”.

So what are the ways in which one can take better care of your ears? Listed below are some ways.

• Control the volume of your headphones by keeping them at or below 50 dB.
• Avoid using headphones for longer than two hours at a time. If necessary, take frequent breaks when spending a lot of time with headphones.
• One should turn down the volume on their appropriate hearing aids.
• To avoid hearing damage, keep an eye on your kids’ screen time and online gaming.
• Make sure that noise levels at events don’t go above 100 dB.
• Make routine hearing examinations a priority, in addition to routine medical examinations.
• Spend time with your loved ones and exercise self-control when using social media.

The doctors said that people can endeavor to prevent hearing loss and safeguard their auditory health by embracing the aforementioned behaviors and raising awareness.

Priyanka Dutta