Summer is finally here, and you’re ready for all those things we’ve been getting excited about: swimming in the pool, going to the beach, and some activities that could injure your ears. That’s right, summer has a few unseen hazards to your hearing, either from loud sounds or the external scenarios you could find yourself in. Any noises above 80 decibels could cause harm to your hearing, while swimming in pools or other bodies of water can cause irreversible hearing loss. To keep your hearing safe and sound this summer, you have to be mindful of your environment and take precautions. Here are 6 of the summer’s hidden hearing hazards.
At Concerts, Use Ear Protection
The summer season is concert time, but even if attend an outdoor venue, you still need to attend to your ears. Concerts can have volumes that are over 90 decibels, even at outside shows, which is inside of the danger zone of hearing loss. So regardless of whether you’re attending an inside or outside concerts, it’s a good plan to wear earplugs. Earplugs dampen the sound while still permitting you to hear and enjoy the music. If you’re taking young kids to a concert, think about getting them a heavy duty set of earmuffs since their hearing is much more delicate than those of adults.
Your Ears Can be Damaged by Fireworks
Honestly, there are a lot of reasons to avoid fireworks in the summer. It’s not only the 4th of July shows which are professional that can damage your ears, we mean the backyard fireworks which every summer season cause many of incidents. As well as causing hand injuries, blindness, and home fires, backyard fireworks can also cause severe damage to your ears since they’re known to reach volume levels of 155 dB. This year, on the 4th of July, appreciate the fireworks from a little further away and leave the fireworks to the pro’s.
Mowers Can Cause Loss of Hearing
If you love to take care of your lawn, your edger, trimmer, and mower are your best friends. But the muffled feeling in your ears is a sign that your ears have taken damage. That’s because the constant noise from your lawn tools have a slow and steady impact on your hearing. If you’ve ever noticed landscapers, you most likely have seen them utilizing hearing protection, you should take a cue from them and wear earplugs or earmuffs next time you attend to your lawn to ensure your hearing stay healthy.
How to Protect Your Hearing at Beaches And Pools
Millions of people suffer from swimmer’s ear every summer, which occurs when bacteria-packed water gets trapped inside your ear canal. The bacteria will then infect the ear, causing painful earaches and swelling. These bacteria are commonly found in rivers and lakes but sometimes also be found in pools and hot tubs if the water is not thoroughly treated. But if you have your ears treated by a hearing professional you will probably be ok, and no irreversible hearing loss will happen. To be safe, when your swimming in your pool, wear special swimmers earplugs and keep the chemical balance precise to minimize the chance of getting swimmers ear.
Boats and Other Water Sports
Summertime is a taste of freedom for those who enjoy being out on the water, smelling the salt air from the ocean or the fresh breeze of the lake. But, boat and jet ski engines can be loud,we’re talking more than 100 decibels. Long term hearing damage can be the result after about 15 minutes of exposure to that much noise. Again, it’s probably a smart choice to wear a couple of disposable, foam earplugs when you’re out on the water to make certain you don’t unwittingly harm your hearing.
Your Ears Can be Damaged by Car Races
It doesn’t matter what kind of auto racing you enjoy, motorcycle, midget, Formula 1, drag racing or stock cars. Every one of them can present a huge challenge for your hearing if you attend race after race during the summer season. It’s estimated that volume levels can go beyond 120 decibels at certain races, which is definitely inside the danger zone for hearing damage. Earplugs are your best bet at these races, whereas your kids should definitely use the earmuffs we mentioned earlier. Otherwise, you may not get to enjoy the sound of those engines in the future.