Prepare for the
Future, Protect
Your Hearing!
Nola Aronson
Do you remember the childhood adage, “Too loud, too long, too close”? We should keep that phrase in
mind in order to help create awareness about the only preventable type of hearing loss — noise-
induced hearing loss (NIHL).
Hearing loss has become the third most common health problem in the nation due, in part, to NIHL.
Noise-induced hearing loss reaches all corners of the population, affecting an estimated 15 percent of
Americans between the ages of 20 and 69, according to the National Institute of Deafness and Other
Communication Disorders.
Think of all of the loud noises you may encounter on any given day:
• At home — hair dryers, lawnmowers and MP3 players.
• At work — approximately 30 million workers face hazardous noise conditions.
• Socializing — subways, traffic and sports bars.
Inside the ear are small, delicate hairs that help conduct the noise that constitutes a large part of
your hearing. Injury to these hair cells comes from exposure — sudden or prolonged — to loud noises.
Once damaged, the hair cells do not grow back, leading to NIHL.
As we have made machines and electronic devices more powerful, the potential to cause permanent
damage has grown tremendously," said Dr. Michael Kilgard, Professor at the School of Behavioral
and Brain Sciences at The University of Texas at Dallas. "Even the smaller MP3 players can reach
volume levels that are highly damaging to the ear in a matter of minutes."
According to research by Kilgard and colleagues, prolonged exposure to loud noise also alters how
the brain processes speech, potentially increasing the difficulty in distinguishing speech sounds.
As a simple test to tell if your hearing has been affected, think about how your ears react to
situations with loud noise. If there is pain, a feeling of having your ears temporarily blocked, the need
to shout in order to be heard, or a temporary buzzing or ringing, chances are you have experienced
some damage to your hearing.
To guard against NIHL and improve hearing fitness, avoid dangerous decibel levels, be cautious of
using ear-buds — which can increase noise levels by six to nine decibels — and get an annual exam
from a certified audiologist.
If you or a loved one are experiencing any type of hearing loss, call your community hearing experts
at Nola Aronson’s Advanced Audiology, 661-505-1135.
This month, Advanced Audiology will be hosting an educational breakfast event on hearing loss
prevention and the importance of baseline testing. Call our office for more details!
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