Life hack is defined by Oxford Dictionaries as: “A strategy or technique adopted in order to manage one’s time and daily activities in a more efficient way.” Life hacks can save you both time and money, and some are so simple you’ll wonder why you hadn’t previously thought of them.
Imaginative but simple life-hacks include flipping your toaster on its side to make a grilled cheese sandwich, utilizing the sticky part of sticky notes to clean between the individual keys of a keyboard, and using duct tape to open jars.
Life-hacks can also pertain to the body: some examples include scratching your ear to cure an itch in your throat, lying on your left side to soothe acid reflux, and pushing your tongue flat against the roof of your mouth to alleviate brain freeze from ice cream or frozen foods.
But what about hearing? Are there any life-hacks we can use to allow us to hear better or easier? It turns out that there are several—here are our selections for the best 7.
1. Assess your hearing online
You can rapidly check for hearing loss with one of the many applications accessible online, or by completing the online hearing test on our website. If the findings suggest hearing loss, you can subsequently set up a professional hearing test with your local hearing care provider.
2. Employ white noise to sleep better
Studies suggest that employing white noise can make it easier to sleep better as it helps to create a bedtime ritual, keeps the room quiet, and helps “turn off” your active brain.
3. Wear custom made earplugs to avoid hearing loss
Prolonged and repeated subjection to any sound above 85 decibels can stimulate irreversible hearing loss (rock concerts can achieve over 100 decibels). Using custom earplugs is an easy way to protect against hearing damage, and the latest earplugs can preserve sound quality while reducing volume. Call your local hearing care professional for more information.
4. Protect your hearing with the inverse square law
This law of physics could end up saving your hearing. The inverse square law states that as you double the distance from the source of sound the intensity of the sound falls by 75 percent. So, rather than standing front row at a rock concert, increase your distance from the speakers as much as you can (while retaining a good view).
5. Use the 60/60 rule when listening to music
If you listen to a portable mp3 music player with headphones, maintain the volume at 60 percent of the maximum volume for a maximum of 60 minutes per day to avoid hearing loss.
6. Favor your right ear for speech
A study conducted over the course of six years by scientists at UCLA and the University of Arizona discovered that the right ear is better designed for speech and the left ear for music. So the next time you’re having issues understanding a conversation, direct your right ear towards the speaker.
7. Regulate your listening environment
Wearing hearing aids is probably not regarded as a life-hack, but it is the only means to properly enhance hearing in the presence of hearing loss—and the things you can do with modern day hearing aids are truly amazing.
For instance, a number of hearing aids are wireless and can be controlled with smartphones or digital watches. That means the individual can discreetly adjust volume and settings for each environment—in essence, the user can literally regulate the sound environment. We can’t find any other life-hack cooler or more valuable than that.
What did we forget? What are your favorite life-hacks (health-related or in general)?
