What’s that you said?
If you find yourself struggling, even occasionally, with hearing conversations or you need to turn up the volume to hear the TV or radio, then it may be time to have your hearing checked.
Remember the old school days with the “raise your hand when you hear the tone” hearing tests?
Technology has come a long way since those screenings. Even if you haven’t found yourself struggling to hear, getting a baseline audiogram may be a good idea. That baseline can serve as a guide to measure future hearing loss.
Seinfeld fan?
In SeinLanguage, Jerry S. discussed always wanting to do incredibly well on those school screenings:
“We think you may have something close to super-hearing. What you heard was a cotton ball touching a piece of felt. We’re sending the results to Washington, we’d like you to meet the President.”
If only… Unfortunately, with the advent of earbuds pulsing sound waves close to the eardrum, constant auditory stimuli from electronic devices, and occupational exposure to harmful levels of noise, few would score as well as yesteryear’s general population.
Recent research has shown that the rate of hearing loss among younger age groups is increasing at an alarming rate. Over 15% of American adults age 18 and over have measurable hearing loss.
P.S. Did you hear Seinfeld is touring again?
Acute or Chronic
Some hearing loss is temporary due to acute, short-term exposure to excessive noise. Ever walk out of a concert or club and feel like your ears were stuffed with cotton? That sensation represents damage to your hearing. While it may be temporary, repeated exposures set the stage for chronic damage and hearing loss.
OSHA Rules
Employers must have a Hearing Conservation Program in place for employees who have workplace exposure to an 8-hour TWA (time-weighted average) of noise exposure to greater than 85 decibels.
Hearing protection must be provided free of charge to affected employees. Baseline testing and additional audiograms must be performed at regular intervals to assess any potential hearing loss as early as possible so changes can be made.
What are we to do?
- Pay attention to your exposure sources
- Skip the earbuds as much as possible
- Turn the volume down
- Use hearing protection in situations where you cannot control your exposure
- Give your ears a break from background noise
- Get a baseline hearing analysis performed
- Tell your employer if you have workplace exposure and sense a change in hearing
“Do you understand the words that are coming out from my mouth?”
~ Chris Tucker’s Detective Carter in Rush Hour
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