One area of the body that can often get overlooked by your senior is her ears. Regular hearing exams may be a part of her routine, but daily care for ears is often not thought about for many people. The ears sit tucked away, rarely looked at or given a second thought. But to stay healthy and keep her hearing in the best condition, consistent ear care is important. One reason ear care may be neglected may be that your loved one no longer has the arm mobility to reach up and care for her ears. If you currently have a personal care at home provider come into the home to help with your loved one’s hair care, you might talk to them about adding ear care to the duties they perform.

This will help ensure your loved one is receiving the ear care she needs. Ear care isn’t complicated, it just usually gets overlooked. Here are four ways you can help your loved one take care of her ears.

Clean Behind the Ears

That old adage that many of us heard from our mothers as children is still true. Your loved one needs to remember to clean behind her ears. It doesn’t have to involve any scrubbing, just a warm, wet washcloth will do when her personal care at home provider visits. If your loved one can wash her hair herself, remind her to get behind those ears while she’s at it.

Wear Sunscreen

Especially with women, putting sunscreen on the ears is often forgotten when heading outside for an extended period of time. The hair may cover the ears while looking in the mirror, but once outside the wind may blow it off the ears or it may be too thin to provide adequate protection. Always apply sunscreen around the outside of the ears – both the top and the bottom – to make sure your loved one doesn’t receive any sun damage on her ears.

Bring Hearing Protection

If your loved one doesn’t wear a hearing aid, it’s a good idea for her to always have a pair of earplugs in her travel bag or purse so if she finds herself someplace where the noise level is uncomfortable, she can put in her earplugs. This is a great idea for any outing to a local establishment with music or even while traveling through noisy airports and terminals.

Turn the Volume Down

When your loved one does have control over the volume, remind her to keep the volume as low as she can and still hear what she is listening to. This can be when she’s riding in the car, or listening to a podcast with a pair of headphones. Since headphones or earbuds pump the volume directly into the ear, because cautious with the volume levels is important to reduce the risk of injuring the ear.

These simple steps can help your loved one’s ears stay healthy and her hearing from getting damaged.

If you or an aging loved one are considering hiring professional Personal Care at Home in San Carlos, CA, call the caring staff at Aviva In-Home Care. Call today: (415) 795-2203

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Evan Loevner

CEO at Aviva In-Home Care

As a former hospital administrator, I launched Aviva with the goal of having a more focused, direct impact on the delivery of care than I could ever accomplish within a hospital setting. For me, the joy of running an organization like Aviva In-Home Care is having the ability to positively improve the lives of individuals needing customized care. As a passionate Bay Area resident, I know that many local seniors can benefit from new approaches to in-home care, that will bring them more connection to the community, and provide families with a greater sense of comfort that their loved one is indeed matched with an ideal caregiver.

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