Acoustic interference is an perpetual feature of modern life. Our environment—from traffic and yard work to music via personal audio devices—is increasingly loud. This rise in noise can have a harmful effect on your hearing if you’re not careful. With National Protect Your Hearing Month taking place in October, now is the most suitable time to consider preserving your hearing.
How to preserve your hearing: 8 key methods
It’s a relief that basic actions can be implemented to shield your ears from the ambient noise you encounter daily. The following are eight major recommendations for maintaining your hearing health.
1. Become familiar with volume levels and their affect
Being aware of how loud is too loud is the initial step in preventing hearing damage. Different sounds produce varying decibel (dB) levels, and long-term exposure can lead to permanent hearing loss. Here’s a quick guide:
- Lawn mowers and heavy traffic fall into the 85–90 dB range, which is safe for up to 2 hours of listening.
- At 100 dB (e.g., motorcycles, construction machinery), hearing damage can begin after only 15 minutes.
- Instant damage is possible after merely a few seconds of exposure to noises over 110 dB, like explosions, gunshots, or fireworks.
A forward-thinking mindset regarding noise levels allows you to prevent environments that are unsafe for your hearing.
2. Check sound levels yourself
Want to know the actual volume of your surroundings? A smartphone makes checking sound levels easy. You can download various complimentary sound meter applications to evaluate the noise in your vicinity. The key to getting reliable data is to take the measurement from the distance you normally maintain from the origin of the sound.
If you use this technique consistently, you’ll better understand your environment and be prepared to make sound choices to shield your hearing.
3. Don’t crank up the volume on your devices
One of the most frequent causes of gradual hearing damage is enjoying music or podcasts at an amplified level. Despite their handiness, headphones and earbuds often mask certain risks. For example, many headphones can exceed 100 dB, leading to hearing loss in just 15 minutes.
Today, over a billion young people are at risk of hearing loss from using earbuds at high volumes. You should never set the volume on your earbuds higher than 50% of the maximum capacity if you want to safeguard your ears. The need to increase the volume past this point to hear indicates that you may already have some hearing damage.
4. Avoid using music to drown out background noise
When situated in a noisy environment or living in a loud neighborhood, you may be tempted to use headphones to cancel the surrounding noise. It is actually harmful to increase the volume too high just to override outside noise. Opt instead for noise-canceling headphones; these devices make it possible to listen to your music or podcasts at a considerably reduced, safer level. If you don’t have noise-canceling headphones, earplugs can be an effective alternative.
5. When in noisy settings, use earplugs
Whether you are at a concert, a sports event, or operating loud machinery, earplugs are critical for those routinely exposed to loud environments. They are small, affordable, and easy to carry, making them a straightforward but effective tool for hearing protection.
Individuals who use earplugs often can obtain custom-fitted ones, which give superior protection and comfort compared to standard types. You should certainly use them in any settings that are loud.
6. While at work, follow safety recommendations
When your work necessitates being near loud machinery or equipment, you must diligently follow all safety procedures for hearing protection. Be cautious because some jobs may ignore the risks; individuals claiming “it’s not that loud” could be suffering from substantial hearing loss and thus misjudging the true noise level. It is vital to protect your hearing by wearing the correct protective gear and sticking to the safety rules.
7. Distance yourself from loud noise
Often, the best strategy for safeguarding your ears is merely to put distance between yourself and the noise. The advantage of distance is that it lessens the sound’s intensity before it reaches your ears, thus helping to minimize the risk of harm. As an illustration, a noise source at 110 dB will be reduced to roughly 100 dB if you stand 20 feet away—a level that allows for up to 15 minutes of safe exposure.
Consider fireworks as a relevant illustration. A firework exploding at 150 dB may seem far away, but if you’re near the launch site, the noise can still go beyond 120 dB, causing instant damage. In contrast, by seating yourself 2,000 feet away (approximately five football fields), you can view the show at a safer level, under 100 dB.
8. Address existing hearing loss promptly
Should you already be dealing with hearing loss, it is imperative that you take action so it doesn’t progress. Auditory impairment is not self-reversing; it will progress. Statistics reveal that approximately 1 out of 10 adults in the 55-to-64 age group have serious hearing loss, and this percentage increases in later years.
Ignoring the early signs of hearing loss only accelerates its progression. Usually, individuals delay seeking professional assistance by a full 7 years. Your ability to protect the hearing you still have is greatly enhanced the earlier you see a hearing specialist to discuss options like hearing aids.
Take action today
National Protect Your Hearing Month is an ideal reminder to prioritize your hearing health. Whether you’ve already experienced some hearing loss or want to prevent future damage, these simple steps can make a big difference.
Schedule a hearing test today and take control of your hearing health before it’s too late.