There are many tinnitus risk factors and examples of these are loud noise exposure, age, cardiovascular problems, smoking and gender.
Loud noise
Extended exposure to loud noise particularly those generated by firearms, firecrackers, machines and loud music can damage the small sensory hair cells in your ear. The sensory hair cells transmit sound to your brain after converting sound waves into electrical impulses.
Construction and factory workers who are constantly exposed to a noisy environment are also at risk of experiencing tinnitus.
The sources of noise related to hearing loss are chainsaws, guns, loudly played portable music devices such as MP3 players and iPods.
Long term exposure to loud sound such as sounds greater than 85 decibels can result to permanent damage while short time exposure to loud noise such as when attending a loud concert can only cause temporary tinnitus.
Age
Age is also one of the numerous tinnitus risk factors and loss of hearing. Tinnitus and age-related hearing loss combine to affect at least a third of adults aged 65 to 75 years old.
As you grow old, the sensory hair cells in your ears and other ear parts such as the cochlea start to wear out eventually leading to frequent tinnitus and hearing loss. A persistent tinnitus may be a serious illness but when not treated can be burdensome and may affect your quality of life.
Cardiovascular diseases
Tinnitus can also be a result of having high blood pressure or hypertension. It has been found that persons taking high blood pressure medicine can experience a ringing sound in their ears, a condition particularly known as pulsatile tinnitus. Only by notifying your doctor can you have a chance of curing this kind of tinnitus since the doctor may recommend another medication that does not cause tinnitus.
Cholesterol deposits on the artery walls can result to a benign vascular tumor inside the ear which eventually causes pulsatile tinnitus. Heart problems due to poor diet and lack of exercise may worsen the effects of tinnitus. Tinnitus is also considered one of the many symptoms of persons with cardiovascular diseases.
Smoking
Smoking may not only be bad for your lungs, and other body parts but may also be one of the risk factors for tinnitus. Cigarette smoke, either inhaled or second hand smoke, can also be harmful to our ears. It has been found that toxic substances contained in cigarette smoke are linked to chronic ear infections including tinnitus. Smoking also leads to narrowing of blood vessels leading to the ears, reducing vital oxygen supply to the ears and sensory cells and eventually causing tinnitus.
Gender
Men are more likely to have tinnitus than women. One of the main causes of tinnitus is constant exposure to loud noises. People with jobs that are usually exposed to loud noises are soldiers and construction workers who are usually men. However, most studies suggest that the number of men with tinnitus is just slightly higher than those of women suffering the same condition.
Sometimes a person with buzzing in ears are confronted with this problem and they may be bothered too much. If you think you hear your ears ringing, check if you have the above-mentioned tinnitus risk factors to start with. If you do, then the percentage of getting this disorder is high!