Environment, choices can lead to hearing loss
August 4, 1999

Driving home, I started talking out loud to myself – or was it to another driver?

In any case, I did not have my hearing aids in. After I spoke, it occurred to me that I did not hear a thing! I kept talking louder and louder understanding that I could only feel my voice, not hear it.

I must have been screaming before I could actually hear myself. “Wow,” I thought, “I really am deaf.”

It is not that I don’t know that I am deaf without my hearing aids, I think I just forget. With the mechanical devices in my ears all day, I hear most noise and voices. True, I don’t understand everything and must read lips to understand most words. But I do use what residual hearing remains.

One thing I love to do is stand in a gentle breeze and feel the air. I can’t remember when it happened, but I no longer can hear the sound of the wind.

I remember when I got my first hearing aid at 39; I heard the wind for the first time in years. A normal windstorm was a terrifying experience for me. I thought a tornado was on the horizon! My family assured me it was a normal, summer storm.

Now I only hear the wind through my hearing aids. If you have heard wind whistle through a microphone at an outdoor event, that is what it sounds like to me. So I opt for the feel and fresh scent of the air alone.

Many sounds no longer are a part of my life. But much noise is still unavoidable, even for someone with a significant hearing loss. It truly is a deafening world and getting more so every day. There is an easy way to determine if the volume level is potentially hazardous to your hearing.

If you are in a situation where you have to stand within three feet and yell to be heard, it is too loud. This kind of noise can damage your ears permanently.

Imagine this scenario: It is a hot, summer day and you are mowing the lawn. A family member comes up to you excitedly telling you something. The mower is still running (at about 90 decibels.) Y

You shout in response, “What?”

They repeat but you have not acquired lip reading skills. In frustration, you quickly turn the mower off to hear them shout,

“I said, the dog just had 6 puppies!”

Protect your ears. If you don’t, someday when you turn the mower off, you may not be able to hear what they say.

Sound is measured in decibels and each person has a different tolerance level to noise. In 1971, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration set regulations for maximum exposure to noise on the job, in a typical 8-hour day, as 90 decibels.

Exposure to 90 decibels and above for long periods of time increase the risk of irreversible hearing loss. Examples of different decibels levels, from American Speech and Hearing Association are:

Whisper, quiet library – 30 decibels,
Quiet room – 40 decibels,
Moderate rainfall – 50 decibels,
Normal conversation, dishwasher – 60 decibels,
Busy traffic, vacuum cleaner – 70 decibels,
Alarm clock, busy street – 80 decibels,
Lawnmower, shop tools, truck traffic, subway – 90 decibels,
Snowmobile, chain saw, pneumatic drill – 100 decibels,
Timpani and bass drum rolls – 106 decibels,
Rock music, model airplane – 110 decibels,
Jet plane take-off, amplified rock music at 4-6 feet, car stereo – 120 decibels,
Firearms, air raid siren, jet engine – 140 decibels,
Rock music peak – 150 decibels.

Young people are a new risk generation for noise induced hearing loss. The popularity of listening to music at extremely loud levels for hours at a time increases the risk of permanent hearing loss. When ears ring or have a muffled sensation after a loud concert and hearing does not return to normal in 12-18 hours, the loss could be permanent.

Noise affects the entire body. Sudden, loud noise interrupting a quiet situation can startle your whole body. It can cause your heart to race, blood pressure to rise, muscles to tense and thoughts to be interrupted. You can have an overall sense of anxiety. Noise can cause stress, tension, difficulty sleeping, and irritability.

I do not wish hearing loss on anyone. There are more than 28 million now with some degree of hearing loss. We comprise the largest disability group in this country.

According to the Hearing Loss Association of America, the prediction is that between 1980 and 2050, the number of people with hearing loss will increase at a rate of 102%.

I would like nothing more than to have this prediction be false. We all should consider doing something to decrease the amount of destructive noise in our environment. Most would agree that the future should hold good hearing for the majority. Not the reverse.

Often the marvelous sounds of nature, such as moving water, birds singing or trees rustling in the wind, or the peaceful quiet of the out of doors, are obliterated by harsh, unnecessary noise. One does not necessarily have to be hard-of-hearing to miss enjoying pleasant sounds today.

There is one simple, inexpensive solution when excessive noise cannot be avoided – wear ear plugs or keep the volume or length of time exposed to noise low. Protect your hearing. Each person can find ways to quiet the unnecessary noise surrounding us daily. I encourage you to seek solutions and share them with others.

If you suspect you have trouble hearing, consider having it checked by a licensed audiologist, especially if you like the sound of the wind.