Our hearing is one of our most important senses. Hearing helps us connect with loved ones and enjoy conversations with friends. We use our sense of hearing at work, behind the wheel, and during leisure activities. Most of us take our hearing for granted until something goes wrong. Did you know that some of your everyday activities could harm your hearing and lead to hearing loss?
Our hearing is one of our most important senses. Hearing helps us connect with loved ones and enjoy conversations with friends. We use our sense of hearing at work, behind the wheel, and during leisure activities. Most of us take our hearing for granted until something goes wrong. Did you know that some of your everyday activities could harm your hearing and lead to hearing loss?Noise Induced Hearing Loss
Millions of people risk their hearing health every day. This is because we often don’t realize just how loud our environment can be. When we’re exposed to very loud sounds, the delicate cells in the inner ear can be damaged. When these cells are damaged or die, you experience hearing loss.
These loud sounds lead to noise induced hearing loss, or hearing loss caused by the loud noises around you. Noise induced hearing loss is permanent, and the cells that are damaged can never be repaired. That’s why it’s important to learn more about the everyday activities that could harm your hearing.
Everyday Activities That Are Too Loud
One everyday activity that can harm your hearing is your daily commute to work. If you drive to work through rush hour traffic or commute on a train or a bus, chances are you’re exposed to loud noises. Beeping, honking, and breaks all contribute to the noise, and traffic noise can often reach dangerously loud levels.
Do you work in a noisy environment? Farmers, factory workers, bartenders, waiters, and first responders are just some of the professionals who experience loud noise at work. These everyday activities can damage your hearing health and contribute to hearing loss.
Leisure Activities That Are Too Loud
One leisure activity that can harm your hearing is attending a music concert. The auditorium is often packed with yelling fans, and the music is turned up to very high volumes. Have you ever left a concert with a ringing feeling in your ears? That’s a clear sign that the event was loud, and you could be harming your hearing.
How Your Earbuds Can Harm Your Hearing
Teens and young adults are also harming their hearing. Many young adults spend several hours every day listening to music with their earbuds or headphones. Have you ever turned up the volume on your music to drown out annoying background sounds? When you listen to your music with the volume on high, you could be harming your hearing.
Turning up the volume on your music floods your eardrums with excessively loud noise. The earbuds send very loud sounds directly into your ears and increase your risk of hearing loss. Listening to music with the volume higher than 60 or 70% can lead to permanent hearing loss.
Protecting Your Hearing
The good news is that noise induced hearing loss is preventable! Don’t let these everyday activities harm your hearing. Follow these tips to protect your hearing health during everyday activities:
- Wear earplugs or earmuffs. You should wear hearing protection whenever you’re exposed to loud noise.
- Wear hearing protection when you attend concerts or sports events.
- Stay away from the speakers. When you attend concerts, try to sit or stand away from the speakers so it won’t be as loud.
- Download a smartphone app that can measure sound levels and let you know if your hearing is at risk.
If you want an easy way to know if it’s too loud, try talking to the person next to you. If you have to shout to be heard then it’s very loud, and you could be harming your hearing.
Treating Hearing Loss
Do you have trouble hearing in places with background noise? Maybe you’ve been sleeping through your alarm clock or failing to hear your phone ringing. If you’ve noticed any signs of hearing loss, then visit us at the Hearing Consultants to find out more about noise induced hearing loss and the everyday sounds that could harm your hearing.
We’ll show you how treating your hearing loss with hearing aids will help you hear conversations in places with background noise, and easily hear all the sounds you’re straining to hear. We’ll also show you how you can protect your hearing to prevent further hearing loss.
