Tag Archives: hearing damage

Noise Pollution

Posted on by

Noise pollution is everywhere we go, we can never escape it, but not all noise pollution is bad, it all depends on the level of which the noise is omitted. Safe sounds are measured up to 85dB (decibels), anything above that can have serious effects on your health. Noise pollution can cause not only hearing problems such as tinnitus and hearing loss, but can have an effect on sleep, aggression and stress levels, which in itself has damaging health effects.

High noise levels can have damaging effects even when exposed to the sound for a short amount of time, according to Hearing Loss and Coronary heart disease by S. Rosen and P. Olin during an eight hour period blood pressure can rise by five to ten points, which can rise even more if stressed.

Many people who reside in urban areas where there is a lot of noise pollution (maybe they have an airport situated close by) according to a study undertaken in 2005 approximately pay 4 Euros per decibel per year for noise reduction. However, there is a simpler way to protect your hearing and health when it comes to noise pollution and that is wearing a pair of noise reduction ear plugs. They are cheaper and can be taken everywhere you go, whether you decide to attend a music concert or are travelling.

It is scary how easily our hearing can be damaged, but it is even more reassuring that it can be protected just as easily, if not more so.

The importance of hearing

Posted on by

In today’s hi-tech environment and the demand for everything, bigger, better and louder it is becoming increasingly more important to make sure you have the right hearing protection. We are used to the sounds omitted, but now we have the sounds coming from video games on various game stations, PCs and now our phones. Through this because we are growing around technology it is quite hard to realise the effect it has on our hearing, making hearing protection incredible important to our everyday lives.

Not only is the growth of technology increasing our risks of hearing damage and potential deafness, but also some working environments can have a serious effect as well as leisure sports and even holidays.

This however, can easily be combated; with the simple use of ear plugs that are especially design for a certain activity you will be protecting your ears effectively from damaging sounds. You will also be pleased to know there are ear plugs that have special filters that allow you to block the damaging noises and let the sounds you want to hear in.

When it comes to ear plugs there is a great range to choose form, depending on the brand you prefer and the activity you are going to wear them for. For instance if you will be going on holiday for Christmas flying ear plugs would be ideal for you as they will balance the pressure out, preventing your ears from popping and feeling ill when on the plane. Then there are ear plugs for children, designed specifically for smaller and more sensitive ears.

Take a look at the full collection of ear plugs today to see which ear plugs fit your preferences.

How Will Hearing Loss Affect Your Relationships?

Posted on by

I mentioned this a few blogs ago: Earplugs now or hearing aids later! I’ll add to that: Earplugs now or divorce later? Studies show that marriages are negatively affected by hearing loss. Though there may be times you wish you couldn’t hear your spouse, consider how important communication truly is in a marriage.

Many marital problems have everything to do with a lack of communication between spouses. Feelings of resentment might build when emotions are held back. Frustration may build when one spouse feels the other is ignoring requests. So, when communication is thwarted with an actual physical inability to hear the other person, you can imagine how much this augments the situation. Continue reading →

How Can Golfing Damage Your Hearing?

Posted on by

Crikey! Golfing can damage hearing? How can that be when golfing is a sport known for “sideline” whispers and dainty golf claps to avoid distracting the golfers? Well, apparently, the risk lies with the new-fangled titanium golf clubs.

The noise the titanium clubs make when they whack the ball down the course (and hopefully not in the grove of trees to the right… slice!), has been said to create a sonic boom. While this may be an exaggeration, the fact remains that the noise could cause damage over repeated exposure. One 55-year-old claims his hearing has been partially damaged after using the titanium clubs 3 times a week over the last 18 months. Continue reading →

Hearing Protection for Tweens?

Posted on by

Tweens are kids who are in between childhood and “teenhood” ages 8-12. My daughter falls in this category (almost 11). It’s a difficult age as they transition from playing with toys to thinking about boys. And the boys are very much over the “girl’s are icky” stage as well. It’s at this time when we start worrying about the big talks as well as other soon-to-be issues such as avoiding drug use, alcohol etc. We still want them to wear their bike helmets, even though they are more concerned about how the helmet will mess up their hair. Do we really have the time to worry about yet another issue such as hearing loss?

Well, we’d better because with all the noise in their world, many of our tweens could end up with irreversible noise-related hearing loss. They have iPods and other portable music devices, handheld video games and gaming consoles hooked up to surround sound. They will soon be attending more gymnasiums to watch sporting events that can reach very high decibel levels. Rock concerts may be a bit in the future, but with more and more musicians targeting this age group, you may be closer to a Miley Cyrus concert than you think! Continue reading →

Turn It to The Left?

Posted on by

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. Continue reading →

Can You Hear Me Farmer Joe?

Posted on by

Apparently, farmers are being told to wear hearing protection due to the noise level of pigs during feeding. The little oinkers squeal to the tune of 100dB or more while being fed! Remember that hearing can be damaged in as little as 15 minutes at 100 dB, so I guess if Farmer Joe wants to keep his hearing, he’s going to need some protection.

According to the NASD (National Ag Safety Database, United States), farmers have more hearing loss than other occupations. If you think about it, farmers are independent and therefore not governed by the usual safety laws that protect employees in an industrial setting by forcing compliance. So, even though many of the noises on a farm are at decibel levels high enough to cause hearing damage in a short time, the farmer may or may not protect his or her hearing or that of the hired help. Continue reading →