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WHAT IS AGE RELATED HEARING LOSS?

Age-related hearing loss (presbycusis) is the loss of hearing that gradually progresses as we age. It affects the older and elderly population across the world. Age related hearing loss more often occurs in both ears, affecting them equally. Since it happens gradually, age-related hearing loss may not be easily detected till some major hearing problem appears.

The symptoms make it difficult to understand conversations, respond to warnings, hear phone calls, answer doorbells and hear smoke alarms. It lessens the quality of life and makes it hard to enjoy talking to family and friends, leading to feelings of isolation.

The causes of age-related hearing loss may be changes in the inner ear as we age, or changes in the middle ear, complex changes along the nerve pathways from the ear to the brain and also certain medical conditions like diabetes which play a major role.

Why do we lose hearing as we age?

When there is a long term exposure to sounds, certain amount of wear and tear happens to the sensory cells in the ears and hence causes hearing loss. The sounds actually damage the sensory hair cells in the ears, since they do not grow back; you tend to gradually lose your hearing ability.

Medical conditions like high blood pressure, diabetes also contribute to hearing loss. Certain medications taken to control the medical conditions may contain toxins that are harmful to the sensory organs in the ear and thus causes hearing loss. Some birth abnormalities of the outer ear or middle ear such as reduced function of tympanic membrane or the eardrum can cause problems in hearing. Many older people have a combination of both age-related and noise-induced hearing loss.

How to prevent age-related hearing loss?

You can start by protecting yourself from noise-induced hearing loss by protecting your ears from sounds that are too loud and last too long. Avoid listening to loud music, sound of firearms, snowmobiles, lawn mowers etc. You can also protect your precious ears with ear plugs or ear muffs. These are some of the simple steps that can prevent the loss of hearing due to age related issues.

What are the treatments available?

There are many treatments for age-related hearing loss but everything depends on the severity of the hearing loss and the treatments will work better for one and not for another. There are number of devices and aids that help your hearing loss and the most common ones are external hearing aids, cochlear implants, bone anchored hearing system, assistive hearing devices or lip reading/speech reading techniques.

WHY DO YOU NEED SLEEP HYGIENE?

Sleeping well on a regular basis is very important and sleep hygiene goes a long way in doing this. Getting good sleep is always beneficial for a healthy body and a healthy mind. Say for example one of the best sleep hygiene practice is to spend the right amount of time sleeping taking care that it is not too little or too long. There are other similar habits which are counted as sleep hygiene and which are beneficial for our health and well being.

Here are few things you can do to ensure that you get the benefits of good sleep hygiene.

Follow body’s natural rhythms

It is quite easy to do this if you are otherwise healthy. Just get up at the same time every day and soon your body will adjust to the timing, where it will feel tired the same time every night and you will open your eyes to a fresh day every morning at the same time. The tip is that never attempt to lie in bed on weekends as most of us tend to do, this will mostly upset the rhythm you have set. Avoid daytime naps.

Pull the screens

Always remember to prepare for bed which is not so difficult as many thing. The first step would be to pull your screens into place few hours before you go to sleep. This will create an increased stimulation for sleep. When you cut out the outside light and visual interference your brain and body will start to unwind.

Prepare your brain

Though ‘preparing the brain’ may look like a impossible task the truth is we have the power to control our thoughts and shut them off when we need. Disconnect your brain from mundane thoughts and feel peaceful, it means unplugging your brain for bed.

Make a nightly ritual

Here ritual is actually starting a daily routine. We all have a childhood bedtime routine that usually our parents encourage us to develop but after childhood we tend to stop those habits. Let take a bedtime routine like brushing your teeth before going to bed or having a warm bath or drinking a glass of milk all these can help an adult too.

Ensure a cool and dark room

A dark room is important to induce sleep since a well lit room will interfere with the circadian rhythms. If the room is cool then it will help your brain by sending message that now your body can rest. This is very important for workers coming back after a night shift and sleep during day time. Block out the daylight and have a cool sleep.

Try avoiding drugs

It is found that habits like cigarette smoking before bedtime, alcohol or sleeping pills will affect a good sleep routine. All these will help you fall asleep but will interfere with your sleep patterns and give you headaches in the morning.

Keep away your coffee

Caffeinated drinks like coffee, tea, cola and chocolate at bedtime is risky, it can spoil your sleep. Instead, go for a warm cup of milk since milk has sleep inducing amino acids.

DO YOU KNOW WHAT IS A BURNING FEET?

Unless you step on something hot your feet should not been feeling any burning sensation. But many people complain of a burning sensation under the feet. A sensation like that is mostly due to nerve damage in the legs. Medically this nerve damage is known as neuropathy. There are many reasons for burning feet but diabetes is the most common of them all. The treatment usually focuses on preventing further nerve damage and reducing pain.

Causes of burning feet

Neuropathy is the most common cause of burning fee. The damaged nerves send pain signals to the brain which causes the burning sensation, even though there is no wound under the feet. Patients often have tingling and numbness in the feet as well. Many patients complain that their feet are overly sensitive to touch with varying degrees of burning pain. The pain can vary from mild to truly disabling. Diabetes and alcohol abuse are the main cause of neuropathy in the legs.

There are also many other conditions that can cause the burning feet sensation like chronic kidney disease, vitamin deficiency, low thyroid hormone levels, HIV, side effects of medications, heavy metal poisoning and vaculitis or inflammation of blood vessels and many other medical conditions. A proper diagnosis is required to determine the cause. Besides neuropathy inflammation of the feet can also cause burning sensation. The most common is athlete’s foot or fungal infection of the skin. Peripheral artery disease causes poor circulation in the feet and cause burning, tingling and pain in the feet.

Diagnosis for burning feet

If a person has the burning feet problem and has been a diabetic then the cause is easily identified. For such people the diagnosis of burning feet due to neuropathy is straightforward and no additional testing is required. In those people who develop acute burning feet without any explainable cause further testing may be needed. Tests like electromyography or EMG test of muscle function using electrical activity is done. Nerve conduction study is also done in some patients. Other may require in addition to the above certain blood, urine and spinal fluid tests or in severe cases even nerve biopsy, though very rarely recommended by doctors.

Treatments for burning feet

The first step in the treatment for burning feet due to neuropathy is to stop ongoing nerve damage. In other cases the treatment for underlying disease will improve the neuropathy and symptoms. In cases where the cause cannot be identified the doctor will focus on treating the person’s symptoms.

For diabetic patients keeping the blood sugar under control can give solace to the burning feet symptoms and manage the neuropathy. The treatment usually requires dietary changes, oral medications and at time insulin injections.

For people with other forms of neuropathy or other causes the burning feet problem can be treated by managing the pain through medications, supplements for vitamin deficiency, stopping excessive drinking in alcoholics and treating thyroid problems. The doctor after identifying the specific problem will treat the specific health condition and this will give relief to the burning feet symptoms.

DOES TOO MUCH OF SYSTEM WORK AFFECT YOUR EYES?

Today almost all the jobs be it IT, corporate, government offices or hospitals require the staff to work continuously in front of the system for hours together. This can put lot of strain on your eyes which are not exactly made for such strain.

Eye problem caused by continuous staring at computer screens is known as Computer Vision Syndrome (CVS). The classification is very general and it is not one specific problem. It is a whole range of problems including eye strain and pain. A large number of people working on computer screen have at least a few symptoms of eye strain.

If you think the problem is specific to adults who work on the computer, you are wrong because the number of kids with problems due to working on computer is increasing day by day. Kids use computers, tablets and even spend lot of time on mobile screens putting their eyes to lot of effort. They have issues with eyes and well as physically because most of the time they work in low light and adapt bad posture while doing their work.

What is CVS?

CVS is a problem that is similar to carpal tunnel syndrome and other injuries to the eyes due to repetitive work. It happens when the eyes follow the same pattern of movement over and over for long hours. It gets bad as more and more time is spent with the same problem being present.

Usually computer work gets difficult as you age and the lenses get less and less flexible. For those around 40 years, the ability to focus on near and far objects slowly diminishes. This is called as Presbyopia and this can be corrected with exercise and use of lenses.

What are the symptoms of CVS?

Though it has not been proved that long term computer use damages the eye, it is observed the CVS is an existing problem.

Some of the symptoms are:

Blurred vision
Double vision
Eye irritation
Dry eyes
Redness in the eyes
Headaches
Neck and back pain

The CVS problem not only affects your eyes but other parts of the body as well especially the face, head and neck. Finally all the pain and discomfort will affect the productivity in your work.

How to manage CVS?

It only takes a few subtle changes to your workspace and personal habits to control CVS and prevent it from getting worse.

Stop the Glare: The computer glare is what can harm your eyes. It is the glare that falls on the computer screen from the overhead light fixtures in an office, an open window that casts the glare on the screen or a desk lamp that is quite harsh. You can move the desk to cut out the glare, ask the management to provider a dimmer for the overhead light or use a desk lamp to cast an even light on the desk.

Position Your Monitor: A monitor placed slightly below the eye level is ideal and it should be 25-28 inches from your face. The idea is that you don’t have to stretch your neck or strain your eyes while working on the computer.

Break from Monotony: The best recommendation is to use 20-20-20 rule. Look at the screen for 20 minutes, and then look away at something 20 metres away for another 20 seconds, then back to the screen.

Rest your Screen: Don’t settle for the preset screen and make adjustments to it that will make working on it much more comfortable for your eyes. Adjust the brightness, the contrast and the font size according to your liking. This will go a long way in making your eyes feel strain free thus stopping CVS in its tracks.

Last but not the least visit your doctor for eye check-up regularly and follow the prescription and suggestions closely.

WHAT IS SLEEP DISORDER ?

Sleep disorders is a condition which affects how much and how well one sleeps. The causes for sleep disorder are many and include poor daily habits and some medical problems that disrupt the sleep cycle. The first thing you notice when you have sleep disorder is that you feel fatigued when you get up in the morning. If you don’t feel rested then there is a serious problem for which you should consult your doctor.

Dangers of sleep disorder

Dangers of sleep disorder include lack of sleep and the subsequent effect on your life. Sleep deprivation leads to accidents, relationship problems, poor performance at job, and injuries at work-place, memory problems, mood swings, weight gain and many other medical problems. It is also known that sleep disorders lead to heart diseases, obesity and diabetes.

Symptoms of Sleep disorders

Sleep disorders are of many types and the symptoms depend on the type or disorder.
Feel fatigued and sleepy during day time
Difficulty in falling asleep or staying awake or disturbed sleep.
Chronic snoring
Stopping the breath in-between sleep (apnea)
The restless leg syndrome where you feel uncomfortable in the legs

How much sleep is needed?

The amount of sleep one requires is determined by our age. Infants need anywhere between 12-15 hours, toddlers need from 11-14 hours, preschoolers between 10-13 hours, school children 9-11 hours, teens 8-10 hours and adults require anywhere between 7-8 hours.

What is Insomnia?

If you lie awake at night for hours together and wake up early, while not being able to drift into sleep again or do you wake up repeatedly at night? Then you may be suffering from insomnia. Insomnia is a common disorder that grips most adults.

What is sleep hygiene?

If you drink coffee in the afternoon or in the evenings or if you smoke or eat heavy food before going to bed, it has an example of bad sleep hygiene. Some people go to bed at different time each night or fall asleep with the television on these are also counted as bad sleep hygiene. So keep your sleep habits clean and sleep inducing.

Health problems due to sleep disorders

Sleep disorder leads to many health problems and some are life taking, so you have to keep yourself sleep healthy to avoid such ailments. Sleep disorders can lead to arthritis, heartburn, chronic pain, asthma, heart failure, thyroid problems, weight gain, work performance, neurological disorders like stroke, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s.

Other causes of sleep disorders

Insomnia is a common problem among pregnant women especially in the first and third trimesters. Another reason for sleep disorders could be menopause in women. Age is another factor where men and women get sleep disorder after the age of 65. Yet another cause of sleep problem is frequent flying and shift work where the circadian rhythm is disrupted. Where the internal body clock malfunctions there you have sleep problems. Also insomnia can be a presenting symptoms of an underlying psychiatric disorder. Eg. Depression, anxiety disorder, substance abuse, etc.

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