What is the noisiest place you’ve ever been? For most of us, things which spring to mind are likely to be a concert, a big city, or perhaps a child’s birthday party fifteen minutes after cake and ice cream are served.
Maybe you’ve had the misfortune of trying to sleep through your neighbor’s home renovations, roadwork going on nearby, or accidentally plugged in your headphones with the volume set to full blast.
While these kinds of noises may not be particularly pleasant and might even give us a bit of an earache, generally, they won’t cause any lasting damage. But what happens when noisy environments are your daily life?
When do you need professional hearing protection?
Guidelines established by the Environmental Protection Agency recommend that a person’s average daily noise exposure not exceed 70 decibels (dB).
That’s about the equivalent of a large appliance like a washing machine or dryer running. Anything over 85dB – equivalent to a hairdryer, a kitchen blender, or cinema speakers – is considered damaging to hearing if you are exposed to it regularly (8+ hours a day).
The following scale from the American Acadamy of Audiology gives you an idea of the kinds of noise levels which pose a threat to your hearing:
Although construction noise in your building may well exceed the limits of what is “healthy” for our ears to take in, it shouldn’t cause any permanent injury in short durations.
But if you work in the music industry, construction, aviation, manufacturing, and these noise levels are part of your average working day; it’s a different story.
Prolonged, regular exposure means you need to take your ear protection seriously. Hearing loss caused by exposure to unsafe sound levels is irreversible, but thankfully it’s also entirely preventable.
So, whether you go clay pigeon shooting on the weekends or spend your working day on an airport runway, let’s look at some of the best custom and professional-grade options to protect your hearing.
