You’ve probably already noticed that your hearing is waning. Usually, we don’t even recognize that our choices are negatively impacting our hearing.

With a few simple lifestyle changes, many types of hearing loss can be avoided. Let’s look at six unexpected secrets that will help you maintain your hearing.

1. Regulate Your Blood Pressure

Consistently high blood pressure is not okay. A study found that people who have higher than-average blood pressure are 52% more likely to have hearing loss, not to mention other health issues.

Take actions to reduce your blood pressure and avoid hearing damage. See a doctor right away and never disregard your high blood pressure. Blood pressure management includes correct diet, exercise, stress management, and following your doctor’s orders.

2. Stop Smoking

There are plenty of good reasons to quit smoking, here’s another: Hearing loss is 15% more likely to impact smokers. Even more shocking: People who are frequently subjected to second-hand smoke are 28% more likely to develop hearing issues. Even if you leave the room, smoke lingers for long periods of time with hazardous repercussions.

If you smoke, protect your hearing and think about quitting. Take steps to minimize your exposure to second-hand smoke if you spend time with a smoker.

3. Manage Your Diabetes

One out of four adults is either pre-diabetic or diabetic. Unless they make some serious lifestyle changes, someone who is pre-diabetic will probably develop diabetes within 5 years.

High blood sugar damages blood vessels, which makes it extremely hard for them to effectively carry nutrients. A diabetic individual is more than two times as likely to cope with hearing loss compared to a non-diabetic person.

If you have diabetes, take the steps necessary to properly manage it. Protect your hearing by making lifestyle changes if you are at risk of type 2 diabetes.

4. Lose Some Weight

This isn’t about body image or feeling good about yourself. It’s about your health. As your Body Mass Index (BMI) goes up, so does your risk of hearing loss and other health disorders. A mildly obese woman (with a 30 to 34 BMI) has a 17% higher risk of getting hearing loss. For someone with a BMI of 40 (moderate obesity), the risk increases to 25%.

Work to get rid of some of that excess weight. Your life can be prolonged and your hearing can be safeguarded by something as basic as walking for 30 minutes each day.

5. OTC Medications Shouldn’t be Overused

Certain over-the-counter (OTC) drugs can cause hearing impairment. The danger increases when these medicines are taken regularly over lengthy periods of time.

Typical over-the-counter medicines that impact hearing include aspirin, NSAIDs (like naproxen, ibuprofen), and acetaminophen. Take these medicines moderately and seek advice from your doctor if you’re taking them regularly.

If you’re taking the recommended dose for the occasional headache, studies indicate you’ll probably be okay. The risk of hearing loss increases up to 40% for men, however, when these medications are taken on a daily basis.

Your doctor’s advice should always be followed. Your doctor might be able to recommend some lifestyle changes that will decrease your dependence on these drugs if you are using them every day.

6. Eat More Broccoli

Broccoli is loaded with iron in addition to important nutrients such as vitamins C and K. Iron is vital to blood circulation and a healthy heart. Oxygen and nutrients are carried to your cells which helps keep them healthy and nourished and iron is a significant part of this process.

If you’re a vegetarian or eat very little meat, it’s important that you consume enough plant-based iron. You’re more likely to be iron deficient because the iron found in plants is less bioavailable than the iron found in meat.

More than 300,000 people were examined by Pennsylvania State University. The researchers discovered participants with anemia (severe iron deficiency) were two times as likely to develop sensorineural hearing loss as those without the condition. Age-related permanent hearing loss is what the technical term “sensorineural hearing loss” refers to.

Sound is received and transmitted to the brain by delicate little hairs in the inner ear which resonate with the frequency and volume of that sound. If poor circulation or an iron deficiency causes these delicate hairs to die they will never grow back.

Don’t wait to get a hearing exam because you’re never too young. Counter hearing loss by implementing these simple secrets in your everyday life.