Lindsay Lohan on the Effects of Hearing Loss

Many celebrities are now joining the "Hear the World" campaign as hearing health ambassadors, this week New Generation Miami Hearing Center has chosen to talk about ambassador Lindsay Lohan. An actress/musician with over 15 years in the business, Lindsay Lohan began by acting in different commercials for companies such as Wendy’s and Pizza Hut.

Lindsay became a known actress for her role in the remake of the 1961 movie “The Parent Trap,” where the young actress was able to show off her talent by playing the roles of twin sisters Hallie and Annie. Since then, she has been part of many popular films such as "Life-Size", “Mean Girls” and “ Freaky Friday”, the latter of which allowed her to show off her musical abilities, singing the final song “Ultimate.”

Lindsay Lohan has shown audiences her musical and theatrical talent and her well-known status will help bring awareness on hearing loss and hearing damage.

Billy Idol on the Importance of Hearing Health

New Generation Miami Hearing Center has each week talked about different celebrities that have joined the "Hear the World" Campaign as hearing loss celebrity ambassadors. This week we are pleased to announce Billy Idol as the hearing loss ambassador of the week. He was born on November 30, 1955 as William Michael Albert Broad in England and has been part of the music industry for the last 30 years of his life.

In the late 1980s he skyrocketed to fame with hits such as “White Wedding”, “Rebel Yell” and “Flesh for Fantasy”. Through his tumultuous career, he has entertained generations of fans; his most recent feat, a tour in 2008 going through the USA and Europe.

Billy Idol has put his well-known status to good use by being a hearing loss ambassador, helping bring awareness about important matters dealing with our hearing health , such as hearing damage and loss of hearing.

How a Hearing Loss Audiogram Works

The signs you might suffer from loss of hearing include the inability to understand speech, having to turn up the volume on your television or radio etc. Once you begin to suspect you might suffer from this condition visiting your Miami hearing center to receive a hearing test from an Audiologist such as Dr. Joseph Duran is very important. Knowing the level of hearing loss allows you to receive the correct treatment as soon as possible.

The results of a hearing test are shown in an audiogram, which is shown above (obtained from the Phonak Website), . Being able to understand how this graph works and what it means will help you better understand the level of loss you are experiencing as compared to the normal range.

The frequencies: explains how well you are able to hear low and high frequencies. Low frequencies such as the hum of an engine located on the far left, and the high frequencies such as the twitter of a bird, located on the far right.

The loudness level: deals with how loud each frequency is from very loud (at the bottom) to very low/soft (at the top). The values of which are represented in decibels (dB). According to the Phonak website the healthy human ear can hear sounds starting as soft as 0 dB up until 110 dB which is when you would start to feel pain.

After you know what each means you will be able to better understand the results of your hearing test, and begin taking care of hearing health appropriately.

Peter Gabriel: Composer, Musician and Hearing Loss Advocate

The“Hear the World” Campaign is becoming popular among celebrities who have decided to join the cause as Celebrity Ambassadors. Knowledge by the public on hearing health and issues such as hearing damage and hearing loss is slowly increasing. In this article, New Generation Miami Hearing Center will talk about Peter Gabriel’s involvement with the campaign.

Peter Gabriel has been in the music business for more than 40 years, entertaining audiences all over the world. As a musician he understands how important hearing health is. He not only supports the hearing loss campaign but he also supports “Amnesty International” which talks about human rights on an international level, especially the rights of political prisoners. His recent works include the theme song for the movie “Wall-E”.

Hearing Health is Important to Prevent Ear Infections

Suffering from hearing loss can negatively affect your quality of life, as discussed in previous articles. Hearing health should be a priority and one of the many steps you can take for prevention is avoiding ear infections at all costs. This illness may cause loss of hearing when left untreated.

Discovery Health understands how important hearing health is and has written an article in which it explains how children are usually the ones that suffer the most with Otitis Media (or middle ear infections). In the article we are given tips on how to take care of our hearing health and prevent hearing loss.

Avoid exposure to infections. Middle-ear infections usually happen when you catch a cold or other upper respiratory illness. If you suffer from allergies that might affect their respiratory tract, try to keep it on check.

Blow your nose correctly. Many people blow their nose in a violent way which may transfer any infection you might have to your ears. Blow your nose gently. Others may try to stifle a sneeze and by pinching the nostrils it gives the infection a chance to move up to the ears.

Don't smoke. In previous articles we discussed the connection between smoking and hearing loss. Smoking can also cause ear infections since according to Discovery Health; it “irritates the nasal passages and middle-ear cavity which in turn interferes with the normal functioning of the eustachian tube.”

Stay alert to the signs. If you suspect you or your child might suffer from an ear infection, visit your local Miami audiologist such as Dr. Joseph Duran to treat the infection as soon as possible. Signs include pain in the ear, ear stuffiness, and trouble with balance, fever, nausea, vomiting and fluid from the ear.

“UP” Movie Star New Hear The World Ambassador

New Generation Miami Hearing Center has each week introduced a new celebrity ambassador which has joined the "Hear the World" Campaign to bring awareness about hearing loss and the correct usage of hearing aids. This week of November 8th, we will talk about Carl Fredericksen who is the 36^th Hearing Loss Celebrity Ambassador.

Carl is the main character in the animated film “Up”, created by Disney Pixar. Carl's support of the campaign will allow more people to learn about hearing aids, since in the movie we can see him wearing them to improve his loss of hearing. Carl’s usage of hearing aids is depicted in a comical way, allowing people to learn more about how hearing aids can improve their hearing.

Smoking May Affect Hearing Health

Campaigns have been created to help create conscience about the negative side effects smoking can have on your health, one of the main ones being lung cancer. Studies are now finding that smoking might also affect hearing health. Loss of Hearing is a condition that has become more and more prevalent as the years pass. In this article, New Generation discusses the different studies, which have been done over the years, finding a connection between hearing damage and smoking cigarettes.

In 1998, the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), conducted a study to confirm these suspicions. 3,753 adults between the ages of 48 and 92 years participated in the study. The participants’ smoking history was taken into account. The results concluded smokers were 1.69 times as likely to have hearing loss as nonsmokers. The study also confirmed that individuals who lived with smokers were more likely to have hearing loss.

In 2003, the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) did a study on the “combined effect of smoking and occupational exposure to noise on hearing loss in steel factory workers.” The results concluded that smoking led to increased possibilities of developing high frequency hearing loss. Individuals exposed to smoke had a 2.56 probability as compared to individuals with no exposure who had a 1.77 probability.

Finally, in 2008, Antwerp University in Belgium conducted a research involving 4,000 people, between the ages of 53 and 67. The participants' hearing health was checked. The lead researcher Dr. Erik Fransen explained that “the ability to pick out high frequency sounds was damaged in smokers and the obese.” He also explained how “The hearing loss is proportional to how much you smoke and your body mass index (BMI).”

In conclusion, hearing health is affected negatively by smoking cigarettes, and as the years pass new studies will come out to confirm these results.

Bobby McFerrin on the Importance of Hearing Health

New Generation Miami Hearing Center is part of the “Hear the World” Campaign. An initiative that helps many Americans who now suffer from hearing loss. The campaign brings awareness of how hearing aids can help improve the quality of life for individuals with this condition.

Bobby McFerrin has joined the campaign as a Celebrity Ambassador. In an interview, he was asked what he thought was more important, hearing health or being able to sing well, his response: “(Sigh!) It would be kind of tragic being able to sing, but not being able to hear if I was singing in tune or not, so I think being able to hear well is more important. Eventually my voice is not going to be as strong as it is now. Who knows how long God has planned for me to be a singer on this earth, but I really want to be able to hear the birds singing, the water in the creek and the wind in the trees.”