Summer is a great time to protect your hearing
by Daniel Fink, MD, Chair, The Quiet Coalition
Photo credit: LRM Exterior
Summer is a great time to protect your hearing, according to a Science News article written by senior neuroscience writer Laura Sanders. I would note that any season is a great time to protect one’s hearing, but if the beauty and joy of the first days of summer motivates you, now is as good a time to start as any.
Sanders quotes audiologist Deanna Meinke who points out that almost everyone has a favorite color but few have a favorite sound.
“We protect things we treasure. So we have to get people to value their hearing,” Meinke said.
Sanders also quotes Dr. Frank Lin at Johns Hopkins University, who said hearing loss is somewhat inevitable as we get old. It’s true that almost everything gets worse as one gets older, but I don’t agree with Lin about hearing.
My analysis of the literature suggests that a small decrement in hearing — maybe a 10 decibel loss — might be normal, but significant hearing loss of 25-40 decibels isn’t part of normal aging. It largely represents the cumulative effect of excessive noise exposure over a lifetime. What is commonly called presbycusis or age-related hearing loss is really just noise-induced hearing loss in the elderly.
The most important thing I learned from Sanders’ article is that there is a new free hearing test developed by Lin and his colleagues called Hearing Number. This is a screening audiogram using a smartphone app. Lin thinks that it’s important to follow one’s hearing number over time, but the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force does not recommend routine screening in adults. If knowing how one’s ears are doing motivates a person to protect his or her hearing, maybe checking it is a good idea. I don’t need to know or follow a number to protect mine.
Sanders writes almost exactly what I often write: “Turn down the volume when possible, move away from loud noises and limit the time spent near them. When those adjustments aren’t possible, get some hearing protection.”
Because if it sounds loud, it’s too loud and one’s auditory health is at risk.
Happy Summer!