Hearing Loss Prevention

Noise is one of the most common causes of hearing loss, and one of the most common occupational illnesses in the United States. A single shot from a shotgun, experienced at close range, may permanently damage your hearing in an instant. Repeated exposures to loud machinery may, over an extended period of time, present serious risks to human hearing.

• 10 million Americans have already suffered irreversible hearing damage from noise;
• 30 million are exposed to dangerous noise levels each day.
• The effects of noise on hearing are often underestimated because the damage takes place so gradually.

Excessive noise damages the delicate hair cells in the inner ear. This damage results in sensorineural hearing loss and often tinnitus (ringing of the ears). Dangerous levels of noise can come from working in noisy occupations or in engaging in dangerous recreational activities:

• Beware of dangerous recreational activities: video arcades, fire crackers, discos, music concerts, firearm use, movie theatres, sporting events, motor boats, motorcycles, snowmobiles, “boom cars”.
• Occupations particularly under risk for hearing loss due to exposure to noise are as follows: firefighters, police & corrections officers, factory workers, farmers, construction workers, military personnel, heavy industry workers (including those exposed to solvents), musicians, and entertainment industry professionals.

If you have to raise your voice to shout over the noise to be heard by someone within an arm’s length away, the noise is probably in the dangerous range. Some of the warning signs of the presence of or exposure to hazardous noise are as follows:

• You can’t hear someone three feet away
• You have pain in your ears after leaving a noisy area
• You hear ringing or buzzing (tinnitus) in your ears immediately after exposure to noise
• You suddenly have difficulty understanding speech after exposure to noise; you can hear people talking but you cannot understand them.

What You Can Do to Protect Your Hearing

• If you work in an at-risk occupation, check with your employer to make sure you have adequately protected your hearing according to OSHA regulations.
• Limit exposure time to noisy activities.
• Universal hearing protection, such as foam or silicone plugs or muffs. Foam plugs are available at your pharmacy while muffs and specialized ear protection can be purchased at sporting good stores, safety equipment stores or from Audiology by Accent. A combination of the devices may be necessary in extremely noisy environments.
• Custom hearing protection can be obtained through Audiology by Accent. Custom ear plugs are made from ear mold impressions taken from the user and offer the most comfortable and dependable fit. Musician’s ear plugs maintain the frequency response of the sound source but bring the volume down so the fidelity of the music is not lost. They come in 9 dB, 15 dB or 25 dB filter attenuation levels and once a custom mold is obtained filters can be swapped as needed.
• At home, turn down the volume of the television, radio, stereos and personal mp3 players, and limit the length of time listening at loud volume.
• Custom ear molds for personal listening systems (like an iPod) are effective because they create a tight seal thereby lowering the volume of external sounds. This makes it less likely one will need to raise the volume to an unsafe level to overcome the noises around them to hear their music.
• 15 minutes in a quiet environment can give the ear time to recover and is advised to anyone who is exposed to hazardous levels of noise.
• Wear ear plugs and/or muffs when using loud equipment (e.g. lawn mowers, power saw, leaf blower).
• Buy quieter products (compare dB ratings – the smaller the better).
• Reduce the number of noisy appliances running at the same time in your personal environment.
• Avoid medications that can be dangerous to your hearing or if it is unavoidable be sure to have routine hearing tests to monitor the effects of the drug on your hearing so modifications can be made as needed. Be sure to ask your physician about possible effects of medications on your hearing.

An Ounce of Prevention

Be alert to hazardous noise. Damage to the ear is a function of energy over time. In other words, the louder the sound the quicker it can cause hearing loss. Since prevention is so critical, make sure that your family (especially children), friends, and colleagues are aware of the hazards of noise. Remember: One-third of hearing loss is preventable with proper hearing protection.

PROTECT THE HEARING THAT YOU HAVE NOW!

(Source: Richard W. Danielson, Ph.D. National Space Biomedical Research Institute and Baylor School of Medicine, Houston, Texas)

Links:

• Westone Ear Plugs
• Dangerous Decibels
• Hearing Protection
• OSHA Hearing Protection Standards

Please all us to schedule your free hearing screening today: (352) 271-5373