Hearing loss information from overseas! The American Academy of Audiology has begun a “Turn It to the Left” program to try to convince parents and children to mind the decibel levels of various audio devices and toys.
According to the New York Times article, as many as one in eight children have noise-induced hearing damage, which means that over 500 million children have a disability that could have been prevented.
If you think about the average child these days and the noisy world they live in, you can easily see why we have so much hearing damage among our youth.
The tech world has exploded and so has the noise. Children have iPods, cell phones, computers, gaming consoles, personal gaming devices, portable DVD players and numerous toys that beep, bleep and screech.
I was shocked to read that toys examined by the American Society for Testing and Materials need only pass a decibel level of 138 or less! ThatÂ’s as loud as the noise level of a jet taking off which can also cause immediate, permanent hearing damage. Hearing damage can begin to occur at decibel levels as low as 85.
Apparently, not only is their hearing being damaged, but their learning ability as well. A few different studies were discussed in this regard. For one, babies who are exposed to higher noise levels in a noisy home had more difficulty understanding and learning language.
In another study, children in a noisy classroom had lower reading scores than children in a quieter part of the school. ItÂ’s one thing to have some quiet music playing and another to have disruptive noises when it comes to concentration.
For instance, as I write this, IÂ’m listening to some music, which helps me concentrate; however, when my children become loud enough to be heard over the music and beyond my office door, IÂ’m distracted and I make silly mistakes. (If you find mistakes in my writing here at the blog, you can be sure my son and daughter were in battle!)
ChildrenÂ’s earplugs and specialized earphones can help save your child from hearing damage. The earplugs are small enough for your childÂ’s tinier ear canal. Earmuffs are better for tots, especially if they are prone to sticking things in their mouth as the earplugs could definitely cause them to choke.
Specialized earphones are a bit pricey, but if you can afford them, they are wonderful for your older child who enjoys listening to music. High fidelity earplugs are also great and they now come in a smaller size earplug.
You can also help prevent hearing damage from repeated cases of swimmerÂ’s ear by using waterproof childrenÂ’s swimming earplugs and an ear canal drying aid.
Cheers!
Meghan
Tags: Childrens earplugs, ear canal drying aid, earmuffs, hearing damage, Hearing Protection, high fidelity earplugs, specialized earphones, waterproof swimming earplugs