As children, many of us were most likely advised to eat our carrots for better eye sight. Chances are that you were not given any comparable suggestions about what foods were healthy for your hearing or ears. Kids now can be taught what to eat for healthy hearing; sensible advice that we should all abide by.
Hearing impairment can be the result of numerous things including noise, age and infections. Nutrients in the foods described below can aid in the prevention of some commonplace causes of hearing loss.
Loud noise exposure can trigger the generation of destructive free radicals possibly causing the death of delicate inner ear hair cells. Antioxidants and folic acid can help avoid free radical damage. A few foods that are rich in folic acid and antioxidants are nuts, eggs, asparagus and spinach.
There are even some foods we think of as treats, such as dark chocolate, are beneficial to hearing health. The zinc found in dark chocolate helps prevent zinc deficiencies which are connected to age-related hearing loss. Any foods containing zinc will help, so if you don’t like dark chocolate, try some oysters! instead!
Music artists, construction workers, and other workers exposed to loud noises, are at a greater risk for hearing damage. Artichokes, potatoes and bananas are rich in magnesium and may help defend the hearing of people with a hobby or an occupation exposing them to extreme noises. Even though the mechanism isn’t known, animal and human research studies have demonstrated that magnesium helps defend against noise-induced hearing loss.
Amazingly, fish such as trout or salmon which contains vitamin D and omega 3 fats, has been shown in research studies to reduce age-related hearing loss. The anchovies topping your pizza and the tuna fish most likely sitting in your cupboard are additional good sources of fish containing vitamin D and omega 3 fats. Any of these, eaten at least twice each week, have a good chance of helping you hear better later in life.
Today, together with the urging to eat carrots for good eyesight, we can teach our kids and grandkids how to defend their ears from the dangers of hearing loss by incorporating basic foods we most likely have in our kitchen.