One of the most common signs of getting older is a loss of hair where it once was and a sudden abundance of hair where it wasn’t, including your ears.
While for most men this isn’t a fun topic to discuss, it’s important to address how your ear hair can affect the performance of your hearing aids.
Ear hair isn’t all bad—it helps protect the ear canal from dust and debris. There are two types of ear hair, known as vellus hairs and tragi hairs. Vellus hairs grow on the outer portion of the ear and can grow longer and thicker as you get older. Tragi hairs are stiff hairs that become prominent in the outer portion of the ear canal.
How Is My Ear Hair Affecting My Hearing Aids?
Thick tragi hairs in and around the ear canal can cause some hearing health issues if you wear hearing aids.
Excess ear hair can lead to several conflicts when it comes to your hearing aids or custom earmolds:
In-the-Ear Hearing Aids Won’t Stay In:
Thick tragi hair pushes against earmolds and hearing aids, which prevents them from staying secure in your ear canal. If your hearing aids feel like they’re constantly on the verge of falling out, perhaps your ear hair is the culprit.
Earwax Buildup:
Excess ear hair in the ear canal can stop earwax from making its way out of the ear canal, leading to earwax buildup or impaction that can also impact your devices’ performance.
Poor Acoustic Seal:
Excess ear hair can prevent your custom earmolds from sealing to your skin and providing that important acoustical seal for earplugs or hearing aids, which is essential for proper hearing aid performance.
Ear Impression Errors:
When creating custom earmolds for hearing protection or hearing aids, your audiologist takes an impression of your outer ear canal to get the shape of your exact ear. With too much ear hair, the impression won’t be as close as it should be.
How to Deal With Excessive Ear Hair
Keeping excess ear hair under control is an important part of caring for your hearing aids. Just like how you keep your car clean both inside and out, keeping your ears clear of potential obstructions from ear hair can make a world of difference for your hearing devices!
When trimming excess ear hair, make sure to avoid scissors with pointed tips, and don’t use nail clippers or waxing solutions to remove ear hair, as those may damage your ears. Round-tipped scissors or ear and nose hair trimmers work best, as they’re the safest choice. Don’t be afraid to ask for help in grooming; someone else will be able to see into your ears better than you can!
If you’re concerned that your ear hair has affected your hearing aids, or that your devices need some assistance due to excess earwax, moisture, or another issue, we’re here to help with our hearing aid repair services.
Simply request a callback on our website and tell us more about what you’re dealing with, and we’ll get in touch with you as soon as we can to help you diagnose and sort out the issue.
Don’t want to wait? Find your closest clinic and contact us in:
Bowie, MD: (301) 860-1124
Southern Maryland: (410) 535-0024
Waldorf, MD: (410) 535-0024
