Last year the World Health Organization (WHO) released an alarming forecast, highlighting that close to 2.5 billion people are projected to have some degree of hearing loss by 2050. Over 1 billion of these cases can be easily prevented and are related to unsafe listening practices, resulting in something we now medically refer to as Noise Induced Hearing Loss (NIHL).
Last year the World Health Organization (WHO) released an alarming forecast, highlighting that close to 2.5 billion people are projected to have some degree of hearing loss by 2050. Over 1 billion of these cases can be easily prevented and are related to unsafe listening practices, resulting in something we now medically refer to as Noise Induced Hearing Loss (NIHL).
Noise Induced Hearing Loss
» Noise induced hearing loss (NIHL) occurs due to exposure to noise above a certain intensity level (85 dBA or higher) for a sufficient duration of time.
» There are few sources of noise that occur naturally that are intense enough to cause NIHL, but humans have now developed many! NIHL occurs through damage to the cochlear and the hair cell structures around it.
» Studies show that as much as 58% of classical musicians and 74% of pop and rock musicians suffer from some level of NIHL.
» Although NIHL is very common amongst musicians it can occur to anyone who is exposed to dangerous noise.
» Music exposure (concerts, clubs and headphones), sporting events and professions with dangerous noise (construction, trades and bar work), are some of the biggest contributors to NIHL, where sounds can regularly go over 100dBA.
The Signs
Early signs of NIHL include ringing and buzzing, muffling of sounds, difficulty understanding speech. These signs can completely disappear after exposure, where only a temporary threshold shift has occurred. If the signs do not disappear and continued exposure occurs, what is known as a permanent threshold shift will happen, where NIHL is permanent and irreversible. As a result early signs will then become more severe! Worsening tinnitus, hyperacusis, distortion and poorer speech can all occur and difficulty hearing conversations in rooms and loud groups is very common. NIHL can also decrease the ability to listen and play music effectively, by causing things like abnormal pitch perception, loudness recruitment and diplacusis.
What can you do?
The solution to preventing NIHL is quite simple, by reducing exposure to the noise itself. You can either avoid it or use hearing protection! Unlike other earplugs dBud are proven to keep the sound quality in check, whilst protecting your ears from dangerous noise and NIHL. dBud expel the myth that earplugs reduce sound quality and hinder communication and they are one of the most simple and effective tools against NIHL.
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