People often think hearing loss only affects the elderly. Outside of a tragic accident, we don’t think about how our daily lives affect our hearing and the potential risks we face. The truth is, there are activities many of us frequently participate in that have a negative effect on the overall health of the structures that allow us to hear. Repeated exposure to these loud noises add up over time and can cause us to lose our hearing long before we reach the age of retirement.
The good news is that recognizing the risk factors will help us mitigate the damage we stand to receive. And the less damage our ears take, the better off we’ll be down the road. So here are some situations you might soon find yourself in that pose a danger to your hearing. Bring along some ear plugs. Your future self will thank you.
A Few Definitions
All sounds are not created equal. The two main factors that we need to take into account are how loud something is, and how long you are exposed to it. We measure how loud something is in units called decibels (dB). For reference, a typical conversation is about 60 dB. Generally speaking, anything above 85 dB is considered to be harmful to your hearing.
Examples of Harmful Sounds
This is not to say that anything over 85 dB needs to be avoided at all costs. Remember, the other factor here is time. But the higher we go into the decibels, the less we can handle.
A noisy restaurant, heavy traffic, and a food blender are all rated right around 85 dB. This is right on the barrier of becoming harmful. Exposure to these situations won’t immediately harm you, but anything longer than eight hours will have negative effects.
A lawn mower, a motorcycle, and a jackhammer are all around 100 dB. Don’t let the numbers fool you, these are almost four times as loud as the items listed at around 85 dB. Although serious damage will take close to eight hours, these can begin to harm your ears after only 15 minutes.
Live rock music, a turbofan aircraft taking off, and a car horn all come in around 110 dB. This is generally the limit of the human pain threshold. Damage can begin to occur after a mere one minute of exposure.
A thunderclap and a chainsaw are examples of what it’s like to listen to something at 120 dB. This is immediately painful. Exposure to this level of volume can have long-standing negative effects.
Standing on an aircraft carrier deck or next to a gunshot going off will give you immediate nerve damage in your ears. These are examples of sounds at 140 dB. They will be extremely painful and leave you with irreparable damage.
How this Affects You
Our hearing system is a complex series of steps that turn sound into electrical signals. It is important to understand how our hearing system works in order to understand how it can become damaged.
Sound first travels into our ear canal to reach the eardrum, which vibrates the eardrum. This sends the vibrations to three tiny bones in our ear. These bones couple the sound vibrations with fluid vibrations in another section called the cochlea. This splits it into upper and lower sections. As the vibrations cause the fluid in the cochlea to move, the membrane separating the upper and lower sections experiences a wave. Little hairs along this membrane begin moving up and down with the movements of the wave. They bend as they hit the top of the structure which causes pore-like channels to open. This causes chemicals to rush into the cell and create an electric signal. The auditory nerve then carries this signal to the brain where it is interpreted as a sound.
Most damage done to our hearing is actually happening to these hair cells. Unfortunately, once damaged, these hair cells don’t grow back. Visiting a hearing specialist is highly recommended after noticeable damage.
How to Protect Yourself
Our hearing systems are set up in a way that harmful noises are either uncomfortable or painful. If something feels too loud, it probably is. If you find yourself in a situation where noise seems like it could become a problem, simply move away from the source of the loud sound. In the case of something like a concert, however, you might not want to move away. Plan ahead and bring along ear plugs to diminish noise levels.
Ear plugs or other forms of hearing protection can be worn while working around the house as well. Mowing the lawn, blowing leaves, or operating a chainsaw can all be detrimental to your hearing over time. Wearing ear protection is the best way to avoid damaging your hearing when you can’t simply avoid the situation.
See A Hearing Specialist
Many of us have damaged our hearing over time. This isn’t often something that can have negative affects on our lives, but sometimes it is. A hearing specialist like Otolaryngology Associates of Tennessee (OAT) can provide expert ear care or even provide hearing aid options if necessary.
