It is important that people pay attention when it comes to the kind of hearing loss that is due to noise exposure because plenty of things can be contributors when it comes to this. Normally, when it comes to a hearing impairment, personal and financial problems are always part of the situation. More details with regard to this problem were given by the president of an optical company. It is this company that is engaged in the personal protective equipment business but they hold the credit for creating the lenses for the first industrial safety goggles in this country back in 1909. With the help of a hearing and speech center, there were evaluations done by this company with a test group of about 43 individuals under the age of 22. They found that 20 percent of them had the hearing of 70 year old men.

Audiences in their shows may also have the condition. 130 decibels of sound are emitted by fighter planes and the same amount of sound can be heard by those who frequently attend rock concerts and discotheques and at this level, your ears will surely pay a price. Recognize that a youngster listening to records played at unreasonable, immeasurable sound levels on earphones can damage his ears just as badly. Incidentally, some musicians themselves are now wearing ear plugs, the same as the ones industrial workers use in a noisy environment.

This should be paid attention to. Nowadays, one’s place of work is no longer safe from noise pollution. Those that work with paper products, airlines, textiles, lumber and wood, primary metals, and fabricated metals are exposed to noise day in and day out.

Here is where man hours are jeopardized due to the problem. Leaves and absences are common when it comes to this. They may leave without ever mentioning the cause to anyone, perhaps without themselves fully realizing that the cause was unbearable noise.

In this case, compensation payments can really takes its toll upon the employers. Millions of dollars have been paid out when it comes to noise induced hearing loss. When it comes to this, other than a ringing in the ears, a person can also experience difficulties when it comes to his or her speech and comprehension skills because of the temporary deafness that comes with it. Here is where periodic testing will be very useful.

Changes are being made when it comes to noise pollution in the work place thanks to the Occupational Safety and Health Act. In this case, the 90 decibel standard was set by the Walsh Healey Act of 1969. This is mainly evident in government offices today.

In this case, you have something that is meant for interstate commerce workers. Noise is something that can be controlled either by changing the setup of the office or by instructing the workers to use modern hearing protection equipment. When a problem like this exists in an industry then there is a strong need for an evaluation.

 

Thank you for reading about free hearing test Chatswood and Hearing.Thank you for reading about free hearing test and Hearing.

When it comes to taking care of one’s ears, sometimes the environment simply cannot be avoided. This means that people who try to follow advice that tells them to remove themselves from noisy situations simply cannot walk away sometimes when noisy situations are everywhere. Whether it happens to be working the kind of job where there is a great deal of sound to handle or simply making one’s home in a bustling metropolis, there are plenty of sources for noise pollution that cannot be completely blocked out through life choices.

 

Fortunately, one’s hearing does not have to be sacrificed simply because it is not possible to duck out of a noisy factory or move a few floors up in an apartment building. There are plenty of other easy ways to avoid hearing loss regardless of the volume of the setting. Here are some straightforward yet essential tips that can have just about anyone avoiding hearing loss, no matter what the setting might be.

 

The first simple way to get around any kind of loud noise on a regular basis is to wear any kind of hearing protection that might make sense for the situation. On a construction site or somewhere else that things are getting loud on a regular basis, investing in the right kind of headphones to block noise, or remembering to bring earplugs if there are going to be hours of non-stop drilling, can make all the difference in the world. Likewise, people whose occupations might not be as obviously noisy should take stock of whether or not it might make sense to invest in some protection, too. Anyone working a coat check, tending bar, or doing sound for a club should consider the importance of putting in some earplugs, too, as it decreases the amount of dangerous decibels bouncing around in one’s ear canal.

 

Of course, it’s also crucial to take breaks whenever possible from loud racket. This means the kind of racket that simply pops up around town, and the kind that’s self-inflicted. Try to get out of the city at least once a week, or move to quieter parts to give heads and minds a break from all of the noise. And for anyone who tries to crank up the stereo on a regular basis in hopes of drowning out neighbor’s music or squabbles, it makes a lot more sense to invest in noise-canceling headphones and simply relax. This way, hearing is not at stake and sanity can stay in the clear, too.

 

For anyone who might be considering a move to a new apartment, it’s always a nice idea to look into ways that building themselves can assist in avoiding hearing loss. For those who can afford it, searching on higher floors is a nice way to get away from the noise from the street below, and many new buildings have thicker glass in the windows as the result of noise ordinance laws that have stretched across the country. Of course, there’s always the chance that one’s dream apartment is near a nightmare street, so again, consider the benefits of wearing noise-canceling headphones and investing in some reusable earplugs as part of the best way to preserve one’s hearing and one’s sanity.

www.MiracleEarHearingAids.net to find out easier ways to get help for diminishing hearing capabilities. When it comes to help, Miracle Ear hearing aids are some of the best out there.

Hearing Impairment: Introduction

Over the years, advancements in modern technology have led to a significant increase in the volume and variety of environmental pollutants. One of such pollutants, which happens to be an immediate and identifiable one is Noise.

A large number of industrial processes (which have developed as a result of technological improvements earlier mentioned), generate sounds up to levels sufficient to cause impairment to hearing of those who work within the vicinity. Sound(s) of various levels of intensity necessarily occur in the human environment. However, when a sound(s) becomes unexpected or unwanted by virtue of it being unpleasant, interfering and harmful to the human system, then it is referred to as NOISE.

Measuring Hearing Impairment

Findings by various researchers have consistently identified noise to be the source of many undesirable effects on the mental and physical health of human beings. The effect of noise on health may be temporary or permanent. However, the most widely known and acknowledged effect of noise on health is that called Noise Induced Hearing Loss.

To confirm the existence of this effect on a particular person, an index of measurement is used to check changes in hearing sensitivity or threshold levels before and after a specified exposure. Following measurement, if it is confirmed that a noise hazard does indeed exist in a part or all of a factory/place, a Hearing Conservation Programme should be initiated.

Setting Up A Hearing Conservation Programme

The basic steps involved in the instigation of a successful hearing conservation programme are as outlined below:

1. Measurement Of Noise: A detailed noise survey of the workplace(s) or area(s) thought to pose a possible hazard to hearing should be carried out.

2. Evaluate The Hazard: Measured A-weighed equivalent noise levels(leq) should be compared with the current criterion of 90dB (A) and all machines, workshops and noisy areas where this level is exceeded should be designated ‘Noise Hazardous Areas’.

3. Noise Reduction: Implement all hazardous noise and vibration control procedures. If reduction of the noise at source or in transmission is neither economic nor practical, then as a last temporary resort, a hearing protection programme should be instigated.

What You Can Do

Look for a Hearing Specialist offering a reliable Industrial Hearing Screening And Conservation service designed to help companies like yours comprehensively address the requirements specified by regulatory bodies. Discuss your needs with him/her.

Simeon O. Afolabi is an experienced Clinical Audiologist, who runs BSA Hearing and Speech Centre, providing reliable Hearing and Speech Improvement services to a varied – and growing – range of individual/organisational clientele.

He holds an M.Sc in Audiology and has been in active practice for 14 years (as at 2009).

Earlier in his career, he worked in the National Ear Care Centre, Lagos, and also in the Kaduna Centre – both in Nigeria.

Simeon participated in Nigeria’s National Survey on Hearing Impairment.

Among other roles, he is the National Clinical Director on Healthy Hearing for the Special Olympics.

Through BSA’s Hearing %26 Speech Centre, Simeon offers Hearing Loss Diagnosis, and fitting of hearing aids, to private individuals and employees/members of organisations.

BSA operates two centres – one based in Lagos, the other in Abuja, Nigeria’s Federal Capital Territory.

In line with his public service vision, BSA offers useful information and education on Hearing and Speech Improvement/Rehabilitation through website articles, and a newsletter – BSA’s Hearing %26 Speech Centre News.

Visit
http://www.bsahearing.com to learn more about Simeon O. Afolabi and BSA Hearing %26 Speech Centre.

In a new study in animals, University of Michigan researchers report that a combination of high doses of vitamins A, C, and E and magnesium, taken one hour before noise exposure and continued as a once-daily treatment for five days, was very effective at preventing permanent noise-induced hearing loss. The animals had prolonged exposure to sounds as loud as a jet engine at take-off at close range.

Clinical trials of a hearing-protection tablet or snack bar for people could begin soon, and if successful such a product could be available in as little as two years, says Josef M. Miller, Ph.D., the senior author of the study, which is published online in the journal Free Radical Biology and Medicine. Miller is a professor in the Department of Otolaryngology at the U-M Medical School, and former director of the U-M Health System’s Kresge Hearing Research Institute, where the study was performed.

Convinced by emerging evidence that nutrients can effectively block one major factor in hearing loss after noise trauma - inner ear damage caused by excessive free radical activity - Miller has launched a U-M startup company OtoMedicine that is developing the vitamin-and-magnesium formulation.

‘These agents have been used for many years, but not for hearing loss. We know they’re safe, so that opens the door to push ahead with clinical trials with confidence we’re not going to do any harm,’ says Miller.

The formulation the researchers used built on earlier animal studies showing that single antioxidant vitamins were somewhat effective in preventing hearing loss, and on studies of Israeli soldiers given magnesium many days prior to exposure, who gained relatively small protective effects.

In the U-M study, noise-induced hearing loss was measured in four groups of guinea pigs treated with the antioxidant vitamins A, C and E, magnesium alone, an ACE-magnesium combination, or a placebo. The treatments began one hour before a five-hour exposure to 120 decibel (dB) sound pressure level noise, and continued once daily for five days.

The group given the combined treatments of vitamins A, C and E and magnesium showed significantly less noise-induced hearing loss than all of the other groups.

‘Vitamins A, C and E and magnesium worked in synergy to prevent cell damage,’ explains Colleen G. Le Prell, Ph.D., the study’s lead author and a research investigator at the U-M Kresge Hearing Research Institute. According to the researchers, pre-treatment presumably reduced reactive elements called free radicals that form during and after noise exposure and noise-induced constriction of blood flow to the inner ear, and may have also reduced neural excitotoxicity, or the damage to auditory neurons that can occur due to over-stimulation. The post-noise nutrient doses apparently ‘scavenged’ free radicals that continue to form long-after after this noise exposure ends.

In the past 10 years, scientists have learned that noise-induced hearing loss occurs in part because cell mitochondria in the ear churn out damaging free radicals in response to loud sounds. ‘Free radical formation bursts initially, then peaks again during the days after exposure,’ explains Le Prell.

The antioxidant vitamins and magnesium used in the study are widely used dietary supplements, not new drugs, and therefore they don’t require the extensive safety tests required for new drug entities prior to use in clinical trials. The doses to be used in proposed human trials will be within the ranges considered safe according to the Institute of Medicine and federal nutrition guidelines.
‘Ultimately, we envision soldiers would have a nutritional bar with meals and it would give them adequate daily protection,’ says Miller. Similar bars with other formulations are already given to soldiers to help them withstand hot weather and other war zone conditions.
‘Other people would likely benefit by consuming a pill or nutritional bar before going to work in noisy environments, or attending noisy events like NASCAR races or rock concerts, or even using an iPod or other music player,’ says Le Prell. ‘Based on an earlier study with other antioxidant agents, we think this micronutrient combination will work even post-noise.’

That study suggested a ‘morning after’ treatment that might minimize hearing damage for soldiers, musicians, pilots, construction workers and others – even if they don’t take it until after they experience dangerous noise levels. It was highlighted by the National Institutes of Health on the NIDCD website.

If effective, such pre- and post-noise treatments could have far-reaching effects. About 30 million Americans regularly experience hazardous noise levels at work and at home, according to the National Institute on Deafness and Communications Disorders. Hunting, snowmobiling, using machines such as leaf blowers, lawnmowers and power tools, and attending or playing in loud music concerts commonly expose people to dangerous noise levels. Noise levels above 85 decibels damage hearing. About 28 million Americans have some degree of hearing loss. For about a third of them, noise accounts at least in part for their loss.

Workplace safety not only applies to prevention of injuries; it also encompasses the environment as a whole, which includes protection of hearing and vision. One of the primary health hazards in manufacturing industries is damage to hearing. In this article, we will look into a special hearing protection aid, ear plugs, which are available for hearing protection in high noise environments.

Innovatively designed, communication enabled electronic earplugs are today available for people who require an unobtrusive design, combined with unparalleled communication functionality. Such high technology ear plugs are today have all the features of traditional hearing protectors, but with the added benefit of allowing users to hear speech whilst staying protected in high noise environments.

Some of the features of these innovative next-generation ear plugs include the following.

The communication enabled earplugs provide easy to use, maximum comfort hearing protection that allows clear communication beyond 85dB.

They also enable face-to-face, two-way and cell phone communication.

They are very easy to operate and can be worn discreetly around the neck, or in a pocket resembling an MP3 player.

Additionally, it can be used by workers in traditional settings as well as new markets including the domestic, entertainment, hospitality and security industries.

For workers who are employed in closed areas like mining or aviation, these ear plugs offer optimized hearing and speech clarity when used with cell phones.

This next generation, patented ear plugs come in exciting packages which include the following.

Allows for communication in environments above 80db.

Protection features against all forms of noise – Impact, Intermittent, and Continuous.

Allows workers to safely hear your surroundings whilst also hearing speech.

Allows workers situational awareness, or the ability to identify the direction of speech and other sounds.

They include an MP3 Interface.

The package includes replaceable ear tips.

Allows for long talk times providing 12+ hours continuous talk time.

It is industrial ruggedized and comes with at least a year’s warranty period.

With so many hearing hazards predominant in mining, aviation, manufacturing and health care industries, it becomes all the more important for employees to consider the use of these innovative ear plugs during work hours.

In our next issues, we will discuss another innovative hearing protection aid – the ear muffs.

Writng article is my hobby…

Swiss hearing specialist Phonak has launched SafetyMeter, a new fit testing system that ensures the company’s Serenity customers receive, and continue to receive, exactly the ear protection they require.

Unlike standard sound attenuation values such as Noise Reduction Ratings (NRRs) and Single Number Ratings (SNRs), which are laboratory tested, SafetyMeter assesses and documents the actual in-ear sound attenuation a Phonak user receives from their custom-molded Serenity protection.

The SafetyMeter fit test can be performed in any quiet environment such as a manager’s office or meeting space, the test is completely objective (no user feedback required), and each assessment takes just five minutes.

Following each test, SafetyMeter provides the user with a personal attenuation rating (PAR) applicable to their specific custom-molded Serenity system. Test data is stored automatically and can then be used by a company’s safety manager, or professional service providers, to accurately monitor and evaluate an employee’s hearing protection over time.

‘By using SafetyMeter users of our custom-molded Serenity systems can ensure that they continue to receive the industry-leading protection they signed up for,’ said Evert Djikstra, managing director of Phonak Communications. ‘Safety managers and service companies can use the test to spot protection gaps before these lead to hearing issues, and because SafetyMeter helps staff understand how to best use and wear their protection, the test can actually help strengthen a company’s hearing conversation program.’

SafetyMeter offers:

• Personal validation

SafetyMeter validates each worker’s own custom-molded Serenity protection, meaning test results are 100% specific to that employee.

• Confidence

Employers can ensure that employees at risk of hearing loss receive protection that performs well within the required parameters.

• Training

During the SafetyMeter fit test, users can ‘feel’ and understand the attenuation difference between wearing correctly and incorrectly inserted ear shells, helping ensure they use their protection properly in future.

• Cost savings

More accurate and reliable hearing protection means fewer potential cases of hearing loss, leading to potentially reduced compensation costs and fewer recordables.

• Compliance

Fit testing ensures that a company meets national hearing protection regulations and the recommendations of safety organizations.

Portable and compact, the SafetyMeter fit testing system is supplied in a sturdy carry case. Its PC software is highly user-friendly and results are stored digitally or can be printed for hard copy filing.

About Phonak Communications AG

Phonak Communications AG, a subsidiary of the Sonova Group, has been specializing in the development, design, production and distribution worldwide of ultra miniaturized wireless systems since 1992. By combining its expertise in hearing technology with ongoing research at the highest level, Phonak Communications AG has succeeded in making substantial advances in the field of wireless communication systems from its development and production base in Switzerland.

 

Welcome to Center for Hearing Aids
Center for Hearing Aids is the leader in the field of custom hearing aids, complete ear check up for proper audio perception, hearing aid accessories, all types of hearing aids services and fittings. We use state of the art hearing aid technologies and style to provide personalized and true High Definition hearing and comfort. We sell all major brands of hearing aids and their corresponding batteries and accessories, we have professional audiologists for checking your hearing loss and detecting early stages of hearing problems. We deal in all the types and major brands like Phonak, Siemens Widex, ReSound, Starkey, Barnafone, Oticon, Alps and Unitron. 

Center for Hearing Aids provides care with hearing aids at retail outlet prices. We are proud to be one of the only companies to provide transparent pricing.

Contact Details:

Sandeep Malhautra
E-32, Hauz Khas Market 
New Delhi – 110016, INDIA
Mobile : +91 9810074489

 

Center For Hearing Aids

 

E-32, Hauz Khas Market,
New Delhi-110016

E-mail : ramavisionhearing@gmail.com

Contact no: +91 – 9810074489

http://www.hearingaidsdelhi.com/

In everyday life, we all live with two types mythologies: shared and personal. There are those myths that we believe because we were told them by other people and they just persisted. Consider the idea that not looking for something you lost too intently will make it easier to find. This is a common superstition among many people. We also have myths about ourselves. Unfortunately, these oftentimes entail a bit of a belief in our own invulnerability and can result in just about everyone not taking care of themselves the way they should. Hearing loss sometimes results because of this.

Individuals who rely on their hearing a lot oftentimes entertain myths that they have some sort of super hearing that normal people don’t possess. While there is some variation among human ears, they are largely the same. If you’re a musician, you have a developed ear, not a super-powered ear. If you’re playing next to a drum riser every night and you have guitars blasting in your ears, you will eventually lose your hearing; count on it. Factory workers are oftentimes guilty of harboring this same idea, and it oftentimes costs them their hearing, as well.

Hearing loss myths also involve what constitutes a good way of protecting your hearing. If you’re at the firing range and you have cigarette butts, cotton or bullets in your ears, you are not wearing good hearing protection. Only proper ear plugs offer useful insulation from the concussion waves produced by loud mechanical devices, whether they are guns, chainsaws, semi-trucks or large factory equipment. Don’t kid yourself about this. You may well end up with hearing aids at a very young age if you do.

A shared myth among most people is that ‘loud’ is an aesthetic term. You can actually quantify loud and, where most experts are concerned, it starts at around 90 decibels. Unprotected exposure to this level of noise will damage your ears. This is approximately the level of noise you get from a lawn mower and other common yard equipment. Loud is also not the same as unpleasant. If you’re listening to music you love, you may well be pushing 100 decibels without knowing it. If you’re listening to music you hate, it will probably sound like the loudest, most painful thing you’ve ever heard. Both will destroy your hearing. Loud is not the same as annoying and even something you love can be way too loud.

There is a myth about age-related hearing loss, as well, in terms of its severity. Provided you take care of your hearing, you shouldn’t lose a huge amount of your hearing as you age. You might still need hearing aids, but you won’t be approaching true deafness. What makes very severe hearing loss very common is the fact that people believe a myth that says that noise is dangerous only at excessively painful levels. If you’re out mowing the lawn this summer, wear hearing protection. It’s louder than you think.

Miracle Ear offers affordable prices on their hearing aid devices. Miracle Ear prices on their hearing aid devices. Visit us online to read our hearing aids reviews.

Our group started a two part series on noise pollution and hearing loss in the past week. This is the third pollution problem being seen by most people nowadays. Anyone who works for long periods of time in conditions of loud and continuous noise is in danger of losing part or nearly all of his hearing. They can blame it on the usual suspects which are tractor operators and similar machines that are used frequently.Trouble can be created after ringing is heard in the ears after exposure to loud and noisy kinds of machines.

However, it has been reported by a group of industrial hygienists that being exposed occasionally to loud noise a few minutes a day will not cause permanent hearing loss. Maintaining machines well will certainly keep the stinging sounds out of the usual engine noise. Replacing a muffler gone bad entails that it be done with a specified type.

It is best to ensure that the exhaust pipe is distant from the operator and frequently opens up. All your muffling attempts will be futile for the sound will still rage on if your combine or tractor cab has its exhaust stack ending underneath it.  A university research found that instead of minimizing noise, adding a cab in the test tractor even furthered it. There has been dramatic reduction of sound level once the interior of a usual tractor cab is insulated. To achieve adequate insulation, cover all metal surfaces even the roof that is covered by foam, with an inch of fiberglass insulation. Upon the cab floor, two layers of insulation were set while the original rubber floor mat covering followed after.  But using just any insulating material might not pull it off.

Acoustic properties are better in some materials than their other counterparts. Kits of material for sound proofing are now coming on the market. To better the sound levels in existing cabs, these should be used.

Noise making machines such as air compressors must be moved from fixed working locations, away from the workers. But then try rotating jobs so that not one person is immersed for more than the minimum time without a chance to recuperate from the extremely loud noise, if the relocation of equipment is not practical.  To insulate the workers from the racket, use sound deadening materials. But then in keeping his ears safe from the surrounding noise, it is crucial for the worker to protect his own two ears in most instances. Anything among car stuffing, ear plugs and ear muffs can be considered.

When surrounded by jet airports or huge turbocharged engines abounding with high pitched sound, ear muffs are preferred. Once they are properly fitted in, you will find that there is much comfort in wearing these styles. However, they must fit snugly about the ear to do any noticeable good. It may come as a surprise that your ability to hear what is going around your machine is not reduced at all. Quieter sounds can come in without difficulty as the loud ones are shut out.  Like muffs, noise control ear plugs are very economical, effective and easy to carry around. But in order to make sure that they are sized to be very comfy and effective, they should be fitted by a doctor or a nurse only. You might feel them being foreign objects in the ear but after a few minutes, you will barely feel them there. Since these are economical, you can afford to buy several sizes for most of your workers.  Sound will not be controlled if you use ear plugs used for swimming purposes only. The will not agree to do this. If one wishes to control sound, he has to look for better options than stuffing his ears with cotton.

Raw materials that are used to create disposable ear plugs are increasingly available. This is generally known as Swedish wool. Consider yourself a fool if you keep working with racket making machines without hearing protection. In the end, when you are already paying for hearing aids and medical treatment, you will regret never investing on ear protection measures which are far more expensive than what you have to spend now.

Go to this site for further information on hearing tests.As a person looking for audiologists you should visit that site.

Many people go years struggling with hearing issues. There are many people who suffer ear problems from the time they are children and this can be a recurring theme throughout their lives. One cause of diminished hearing is a ruptured ear-drum and there are many people that this happens to due to changes in pressure. Listening to loud music in confined spaces or blasting music while wearing headphones can be significantly detrimental to a person’s hearing.  The effects of this hearing damage are not noticed immediately but will most likely happen much earlier in a person’s life than they otherwise would. Losing your hearing early in life can be terrible, but fortunately there is a way to hear like you did before with help from a hearing aid.

Sometimes a person’s job can be the cause of their hearing loss. Jobs such as construction, drilling and blasting, and using heavy equipment for more than forty hours a week can damage hearing significantly. Jobs like this recommend and offer protection for the ears, but in many cases the employees shrug it off and deal with it. Hunting and firing guns can also lead to diminished hearing loss. If you have ever gone for an afternoon of target practice and not worn any ear protection you will be able to notice that your hearing has diminished. The following day everything will probably be back to normal, but the loss in hearing the day before shows that you have done damage to your ears.

Hearing damage is irreversible, and like all senses that the human body us blessed with, it diminishes over time. Taking part in activities such as target practice, or working around heavy machinery with no hearing protection will most likely lead to the ears losing their hearing capability earlier than they normally would. Another problem that comes with hearing loss is that the people around you probably will tire of needing to constantly repeat themselves for you. This can negatively affect your life at work, in a social setting, and with your family. This doesn’t have to be the case though because there are many great options to choose from in hearing aid devices.

For those people who think that they are too young to have a hearing aid, but in reality need one for their daily life, there are now hearing aids on the market that fit inside your ear and are essentially invisible. No one but you will know that you have a hearing aid in your ear and you will be able to live your life much more comfortably.  There is no longer the need to adjust your hearing aid by removing it from your ear thanks to modern technology that has a remote control and allows you to adjust the levels as you change settings. This ease of use makes it great for anyone who feels like they are suffering from hearing loss. Hearing aid companies will even offer you a free hearing test to assure you whether or not you need a hearing aid before you buy it.

Now less conspicuous than ever, hearing aids are a desirable alternative to hearing loss.  You will be even more enticed when you see the great miracle ear prices

Hearing Conservation and Safety training covers many important subjects that are relevant in today’s world. Today we are living in a world that is filled with noise. There is noise everywhere and some of it is damaging to our health. If you walk down a street then you will hear the sound of cars, people talking, birds and dogs barking. A lot of noise we take for granted and don’t even consider how it affects us, but without it, our lives would be much different.

The sounds that surround us can be extremely important in how we connect with our environment. Certain noises in the home and office can cause damage over a certain amount of time. This damage might eventually lead to hearing loss and the need for a hearing aid. Before we realise it, the noise we hear on a daily basis can damage our hearing permanently.

There are around 10 million people that are suffering from the damage caused by noise. Noise not only causes hearing loss, but it can also affect our physical and mental health. People that experience loud noise on a regular basis are more likely to suffer from stress, lethargy, difficulty concentrating, low self esteem and tend to be more accident prone.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration created a regulation to help protect employees from high levels of noise pollution in the work place. This regulation was named, ‘The Occupational Noise Exposure Standard’. This regulation specifies that employees are trained on how to care for their hearing when in the work place. It provides a basic knowledge of how work place noise can cause damage and hearing loss if the right procedures are not in place.

Protection starts with awareness and teaching employees about all areas of sound pollution. Employees will learn about the effect of noise on hearing and how to avoid excessive noise in the work environment. It will also teach employees the reason why hearing protection is so important.

Noise is referred to as any unwanted sound although harmful noise is a lot more than that. Noise has a lot of different characteristics, but there are three kinds that can be damaging to hearing. The first is called ‘frequency’ and is especially damaging when the higher levels of frequency are heard on a regular basis. It is the high pitch sounds that can cause damage, but also the louder noises should be avoided also.

The second kind of damage can occur with a sound’s volume. Louder noise is particularly damaging especially more powerful sounds. As the volume multiplies it creates a much more powerful sound energy which is very harmful to the hearing.

The third harmful element of sound is the amount of time you spend listening to it. The more powerful, louder sounds should be avoided if possible. If it is not possible to avoid powerful sounds then the time spent around them should be limited. When noise reaches a loud level of 90 decibels over eight hours duration then your hearing is in danger. This is when OSHA’s Noise Exposure regulation says you should take measures to protect your hearing. The Hearing Conservation And Safety Course help to educate employees about the dangers of noise before it is too late.

Charlie Bentson King is a Vice President for Workplace Safety Videos – The world’s most comprehensive source of safety video and safety DVD training programs.