Swimming Headband
One of the things that I have started to notice happening quite a bit lately is that more and more people are now using a swimming headband in the pool.
I know they are not actually a new thing and have been around for a while now but they never seemed overly popular, that is until now.
At first I used to see what I term (for want of a better phrase) dedicated swimmers wearing headbands whilst swimming.
By dedicated I mean those swimmers who came to the pool with the sole intention of swimming as many, or maybe they already had a pre-determined figure in mind, lengths as they could and then once they had reached their target they simply get out of the pool, dry off and leave.
Nothing wrong with that of course but for me a visit to the pool is something of a social event. Chat with friends, have a swim, play with the kids (my own I hasten to add). So I never really gave much thought to the headbands that I started to notice popping up around me.
That is until I saw a mother carrying a baby who was wearing one, when I say baby I don’t mean an actual babe in arms, more like an eighteen month old, still a baby but fully able to splash around in the baby and toddler pool.
I was quite surprised when I saw this baby swimming around quite happily wearing a headband which was a perfect fit so obviously was made with small children in mind. I hadn’t realised that these headbands were widely available and I must say thinking about them piqued my interest. So much so that once I returned home I looked them up online.
I have to admit in hindsight that I was fairly ignorant about the use of a swimming headband, my first reaction to them was one of confusion. I viewed these headbands in the same way as I saw a headband worn by other sporting types, tennis players, football or rugby players etc. Those headbands were designed to keep sweat out of the eyes during play and it was this aspect of things that confused me.
I mean if you are swimming then logically you are are bound to be getting immersed in water, so how can a headband keep water out of your eyes.
Yes I know that probably doesn’t say much about my thought process but as I said earlier, I never really gave them much thought.
However, after I had done a bit of online research what I found was a bit of an eye opener for me. It turned out that these swimming headbands were basically nothing to do with protecting the eyes, they are in fact designed as ear protectors.
Well that was news to me, but the more I read about them the more sense it made, even to me.
Swimming Headband To Protect Ears
It seems like that in 1989, the renowned Dr Jack Malkoff had an idea to help his patients swim more comfortably. Dr Malkoff specialised in the Ear, Nose and Throat field of medicine, so it is entirely logical that anything he came up with or invented would be of most benefit to those who suffered any E,N,T problems.
And that is the case with swimming headbands, although somewhat misnamed (in my opinion). In actual fact the proper name for the first incarnation of this headband was the EAR BAND-IT headband but somewhere along the line it probably just became easier to call it a swimming headband.
Today these headbands are readily available not just for people suffering with any E,N,T problem but for those that want to prevent medical conditions occurring that can be caused to the ears from swimming.
The main function of a swimming headband is primarily to keep the inner ear canal dry and free from infection that can be caused by water entering the ear passageway.
Most people who enjoy swimming and other water sports don’t realise that it is easy and quite common to suffer from a bacterial or fungal infection caused directly by allowing water to enter the canal when swimming.
Thankfully most of us will swim to our hearts content without ever experiencing any kind of medical condition from swimming.
I, nor any of my family have ever had a problem caused by swimming or water be it pool or sea, although having now spoken about it aloud so to speak I will most likely end up having to see my doctor soon. Isn’t that always the way.
At first I viewed these headbands as a sort of fad or fashion accessory for swimmers but after reading about them I have come to the realisation that they are in fact quite a smart and useful accessory for swimmers, whether they be dedicated or just fun swimmers like myself.
They are ideally suitable for a wide range of water activities including swimming, canoeing, surfing and water skiing.
One good thing I found out about swimming headbands is that they are available in a variety of colours and sizes, so you have plenty of choice should you decide you want one yourself. I am still undecided as to whether I want one yet, but then procrastination is my middle name (it’s not really, that is just a figure of speech, you get that right?)
Having spent some time reading up on the different swimming headbands and learning quite a bit in the process I thought it might benefit others if I make a sort of top ten list of the best selling swimming headbands available on Amazon at this time.
That way if any one is interested in purchasing one after reading this article then at least you have a stepping stone to help you on your way.
This list is not a must buy list and is not intended to be one. It is simply to show you what the most popular and most purchased headbands are on Amazon.
All the above items can be found on Amazon where they can be purchased securely and easily.
As I stated further up the page I haven’t bought one for myself yet but knowing a lot more about them I am now definitely considering purchasing some for the kids, especially as children seem to be more susceptible to ear infections than adults.
I think part of my hesitancy of buying one for myself is the knowledge of how stupid I will most probably look wearing it. I came to the conclusion long ago that any type of hat or headgear most definitely did not favour my head.
If you already own a swimming headband or are about to purchase one why not leave a comment below and say what you think of them, maybe you can help tip me over the edge and I will get one for myself, or maybe you can just reaffirm my belief that my head and a headband do not go together.
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