Summer is here!
This summer season offers tons of fun. But keep the health of your hearing in mind before you head out for a day on the beach, a rocking concert, or maybe a great backyard barbecue.
When you’re out appreciating summer, remember that your hearing can be damaged by loud noises. So it’s essential to take measures to protect your ears, particularly during the summer months when you’re more likely to experience loud noises.
One of the most important steps is utilizing earplugs, especially under certain conditions.
Going for a swim
Even in clean pools, there can be bacteria and parasites that can trigger swimmer’s ear. You can stop infections by keeping water out of your ears and earplugs can help you do this.
While pool-borne illness isn’t usually serious, polluted water getting inside of your ear canal can have harmful effects. It can lead to swelling, pain, and even temporary hearing loss.
Left unaddressed, infections can cause damage to the eardrum and the delicate inner workings of the ear.
It’s impossible to completely avoid all pathogens in pools or hot tubs, but wearing swimming earplugs will help safeguard your ears.
Concerts and live performances
Attending a concert is always fun, especially in the summer months. Because the entertainers are trying to reach such a big audience, however, volume levels are often off the charts.
You might be exposed to over 120dB of sound depending on where you’re standing. That’s enough to trigger instant and lasting hearing loss.
Earplugs are fashioned to decrease sound, not distort it. The amount of sound that can be blocked by earplugs will be established by an NRR rating of between 20 and 33. An NRR of 20 will lower the sound by 20 dB. So a 120-dB concert will be lowered to around 100 dB.
However, that’s still a potentially damaging level.
Protecting your hearing will mean using a higher NRR the closer to the speakers you will be standing. Even if you get the highest level of hearing protection, you will still be exposed to sounds loud enough to trigger permanent hearing damage within 15 minutes. Use earplugs and stand well away from the speakers for best protection.
The same goes for indoor concerts, sporting events, plays, movies, cook-outs, festivals, or other events where sounds are being amplified through speakers.
Yard work
You do it each week, but the grass continues to grow. You take measures like edging flower beds and weeding the gardens so your yard looks great. Then you use a weed-whacker to clean up around the trees.
Power equipment and other yard equipment can be really loud, and prolonged exposure can and will damage your hearing. Earplugs will help reduce the noise from these tools and safeguard your hearing.
If you’re not using earplugs when you operate the mower, over time, you will be noticeably doing hearing loss.
Independence Day
It wouldn’t be Independence Day without them. When July arrives, it’s time to celebrate the independence of our nation. But fireworks have a negative side. They can produce up to 175dB of noise. That’s the volume of a pistol being fired right beside your head!
If you’re attending a show where the fireworks are thunderous and repeating, you’ll definitely need earplugs. If you’re near to the action, the highest NRR rating is recommended. You’ll still hear the fireworks and they will still be loud, but you’ll be safeguarding your hearing from future hearing loss.
It’s important to safeguard your hearing
Get help before your hearing loss becomes profound. Hearing loss caused by loud noise can’t be reversed and since it takes place so slowly, most people don’t recognize they’re damaging their hearing. Contact us right away so we can help you determine any risks you might have.