Hearing Solutions

Protect Your Hearing!

Your genetics, your overall health, and the circumstances of your sound exposure all play a role in what happens to your auditory system. When trying to figure out how much exposure to sound is acceptable, there are 2 factors to be taken into consideration: the duration ( length) of the exposure and the intensity ( loudness) . Lower levels of sound over a longer period of time can be as bad as brief, but very intense sounds. Occupational health and safety organizations have tried to come up with guidelines to protect workers. These guidelines are a best guess at what will help to prevent hearing loss since there is so much we don’t know about how noise causes damage to the body.

Equipment that we use daily like lawn mowers, power tools, chain saws, vacuum cleaners, hair dryers and even children’s toys can all produce levels of sound that are harmful to the organ of hearing. If you think it’s too loud, it probably is! Replace devices or toys that you aren’t comfortable listening to. When you can’t find a quieter option, wearing comfortably fitting muffs or plugs can help to prevent permanent hearing loss or tinnitus.

Being aware of the loudness of music is very important. If you are listening to your favourite tunes in a quiet environment, the intensity of the sound is less likely to harm your ears than if you are listening at the same “loudness” when you are in a noisy place like sitting on a bus. Custom earbuds or noise cancelling headphones can reduce the intensity of the signal reaching your cochlea while still providing a pleasant listening experience.

Concerts, and often bars and nightclubs, are not ear friendly! Sound levels can become so intense that workers in a place of employment would be required to wear hearing protection and might be limited to exposing themselves to the sound for only 15 minutes! The general way the calculations work is that the louder the sound gets, the less time you should be exposed to it. Protect your hearing with special hearing protection devices that are designed for music. The frequency response of these devices does not warp the sound of the music, but can reduce the intensity of the music to a safer level.

Musicians need to be particularly careful with their hearing. Pete Townsend realized this when he said: “Hearing loss is a terrible thing because it cannot be repaired.” Making adjustments to staging and using in-the-ear monitors or custom hearing protection can prolong the joy that musicians experience from their art.

Using or being in the presence of people using firearms is potentially lethal to your ears! Your audiologist can make recommendations to minimize the risk depending on your unique activity.

Snoring can be a very disruptive source of noise! Your audiologist can make recommendations for suitable options to improve your sleep quality.

Noise isn’t the only problem ears face. Some people are unable to tolerate water getting into their ears. Finding plugs that reliably keep water out of ears can be difficult especially for children. We have a number of custom options that make wearing plugs something to look forward to and put the fun back into swimming!