Summer is finally here, and it’s time for all those things we’ve been getting excited about: trips to the beach, relaxing by the swimming pool, and injured hearing? That’s correct, summer has a lot of unseen risks to your hearing, either from loud noises or the environmental scenarios you could find yourself in. Any noises above 80 decibels can cause injury to your ears, while permanent loss of hearing can happen in swimming pools or other bodies of water. You need to take precautions and be mindful of your surroundings in order to protect your hearing this summer season. Keep reading to discover the summer’s six hidden dangers to your hearing.
When You’re at Concerts, Use Ear Protection
The summer season is concert time, but even if attend an outdoor arena, you still should take care of your ears. 90 decibels is in the danger zone for hearing injury and live music reaches this level even at outdoor venues. That’s why it’s definitely a good idea to wear earplugs regardless of whether you’re going to a concert outdoors or indoors. You can still hear the music with earplugs it’s just dampened a little. If you’re taking young kids to a performance, consider buying them a heavy duty set of earmuffs since their hearing is much more sensitive than those of adults.
Fireworks Are More Than Just Loud
Honestly, there are a lot of reasons to avoid fireworks in the summer. It’s not exclusively the 4th of July shows which are pro that can damage your hearing, we mean the backyard fireworks which every summer season cause many of injuries. Backyard fireworks achieve volume levels of over 155 which can hurt your ears on top of causing hand problems, blindness and backyard fires. This year, on the 4th of July, enjoy the fireworks from a little further away and leave the fireworks to the pro’s.
Hearing Loss Can be Brought About by Lawnmowers
If you’re really serious about your yard, most likely you’re out there every week on your lawnmower, trimming your bushes and using your edger. But this muffled feeling in your ears is an indication that your hearing has been harmed. That’s because the constant noise from your lawn tools have a slow and steady impact on your hearing. If you’ve ever observed lawn care pro’s, you most likely have noticed them wearing ear protection, next time you do yard work with noisy power equipment, you need to take a hint from them and use earmuffs or earplugs.
How to Safeguard Your Hearing at Beaches And Pools
Huge numbers of people suffer from swimmer’s ear each summer, which happens when the ear canal traps water that has to much bacteria. Swelling and painful earaches result when the ear gets infected by the bacteria. It’s not just lakes and rivers that contain these bacteria, they can also be found in hot tubs and pools if they aren’t cleaned and treated thoroughly. No irreversible injury should happen if you have your hearing examined by a hearing specialist. To prevent swimmer’s ear, however, you will want to wear specialized swimming earplugs in the pool and have your pool water analyzed to make sure the chemical balance is safe.
Water Sports And Boats
If you enjoy the water, the summer season is beach and boating time for you. But, boat and jet ski engines are usually loud,they can get up to more than 100 decibels. Lasting hearing injury can happen after about 15 minutes of exposure to that kind of noise. Once more, it’s really a smart decision to wear a set of disposable, foam earplugs while you’re out on the water to make certain you don’t inadvertently harm your ears.
Car Races Can Injure Your Hearing
It doesn’t matter what kind of auto racing you enjoy, motorcycle, midget, Formula 1, drag racing or stock cars. All of them can present a huge issue for your hearing if you go to many races during the summer. 120 dB is well within the danger zone for hearing damage and many races go well above this. Earplugs are your best friends at these races, while your kids should definitely use the earmuffs we mentioned earlier. Otherwise, you might not get to enjoy the sound of those engines as you get older.
