Many habits we repeat day after day, thinking they are harmless, are actually quietly damaging our precious hearing. Once hearing is damaged, it is often permanent and irreversible.

These 5 common but easily overlooked habits that harm your ears — see how many apply to you?

Habit 1: Blowing Your Nose Forcefully

Common scenario: When having a cold, pinch both nostrils shut and forcefully blow.

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Mechanism of ear injury: When you tightly close both nostrils and exert force, pressure in the nasal cavity rises sharply, and mucus carrying large amounts of bacteria and viruses can be forced into the middle ear cavity, triggering acute otitis media.

✅ Correct practice:

Lean your body forward, press one nostril closed with a finger, and gently blow the nasal mucus out of the opposite nostril. Then switch sides. The movement must be gentle.

Habit 2: Using Hard Objects to Clean Your Ears

Common scenarios: using fingernails, hairpins, metal ear picks, or even cotton swabs.

Mechanism of ear injury:

Damage to the skin of the external auditory canal, leading to infection and redness/swelling.

Pushing earwax deeper can form an impaction, causing hearing loss and tinnitus.

Most dangerously, if accidentally bumped, it can easily perforate the eardrum, resulting in permanent hearing damage. The cotton tip of a swab also often detaches during cleaning and remains in the ear canal.

✅ Correct approach:

Earwax (cerumen) usually expels itself. Simply gently wipe the entrance of the ear canal with a damp towel. If an impaction does form, seek medical attention promptly.

Habit 3: Wearing Headphones for Long Periods at High Volumes

Common scenario: commuting, staying up late at night, wearing earphones and immersed in your own world, with the volume so high that people around can hear it.

Mechanism of ear damage: prolonged, high-intensity sound directly damages the hair cells of the inner ear.

✅ Safety rule:

60%

Keep the volume below 60% of the device’s maximum volume.

Do not use continuously for more than 60 minutes.

In noisy environments, use noise-cancelling headphones instead of merely turning up the volume.

Habit Four: Frequent entry into high-decibel environments

Common scenarios: KTV, bars, live houses, gym group exercise rooms, cinemas.

Mechanism of ear damage: The noise level in these venues generally exceeds 85 decibels (equivalent to traffic noise in a busy city), and some even exceed 100 decibels. Staying in such an environment for half an hour is enough to cause a temporary threshold shift (temporary hearing decrease); long-term exposure can result in permanent damage.

✅ Protective measures:

Occasional recreational use is acceptable, but try to stay away from the sound source. If possible, wear professional noise-reducing earplugs. Give your ears some time to rest and recover.

Habit Five: Ignoring water in the ear

Common scenario: after swimming or showering, you feel water in your ear and just shake it off.

Mechanism of ear injury: the ear canal is a warm, moist environment; water that remains for a long time can soften the ear canal skin and macerate cerumen, creating a "breeding ground" for bacteria and fungi, which easily leads to otitis externa, commonly called "swimmer's ear," with symptoms including itching, pain, and purulent discharge.

✅ Correct handling:

Tilt the head toward the side with water and hop on one foot.

Use a hairdryer on the cool setting from an arm's length away from the ear to gently dry.

If you still feel water trapped, use a cotton swab only to gently absorb at the entrance of the ear canal; do not insert it deeply.

I hope that after reading this article you will take immediate action:

Self-check: Compare yourself against the five items above and break the bad habits.

Share: Remind those you care about and your family, especially children and young people who love wearing headphones.

Be alert: If you experience tinnitus, ear fullness, needing to raise the TV volume, or difficulty understanding others (especially in noisy environments), be sure to see an ENT specialist promptly.

The popular science content is for reference only and cannot replace professional medical advice. If you have specific symptoms, please seek medical attention promptly.