You likely wait for summer all year long through the cold winter months to enjoy vacations at the beach and trips to the park with the kids. From music festivals to baseball games, summer is the perfect time to enjoy these events. Just be aware of the downside to fun activities like fireworks: the potential to damage your hearing. You can still enjoy these events, just take the precautions necessary to protect your ears while there. When you consider the fact that noises with decibel levels over 85 can cause hearing damage, you realize how important hearing safety is. Here are some typical sounds you hear throughout the summer season and what steps you can take to protect your hearing.
Fireworks
Young and old alike love to take in a fireworks display as part of many local and national celebrations. The sights and sounds are exhilarating and inspire awe in everyone who witnesses them. Unfortunately, they also spread a great deal of noise. Be on the safe side and view the spectacle from a distance instead of setting up your blanket right near the staging area. Each explosion can ratchet up to 150 decibels, bringing on significant hearing loss for those closest to the action.
Machine Noises
Lawn mowers and hearing loss? You bet. The sound of lawn care machines likely punctuate the summer time haze and daze of your community. You may not even realize the constant drone in the background but the 100 decibels created by lawn mowers and leaf blowers can cause hearing damage for the long term. Prolonged exposure is the key here, and the danger is compounded if you’re the one doing the mowing.
Concerts
Who doesn’t love a little music to fill the summer night air? Heading to a music festival or concert can be a fun way to spend time with friends and family, but consider that sound system a bit: in order for the speakers to emit enough noise to be heard in the back of a large stadium, they must produce at least 115 decibels. The result to you if you sit too close or stay too long? Varying degrees of hearing loss, especially in young adults.
Sports Events
When you head out to a sporting event, you are exposed to a high level of rumbling crowd noise. However, the most hearing-inducing loud noises are presented in the case of race car driving. That deafening noise of the cars zooming around the track can create sounds reaching up to 115 decibels, putting you at risk of total temporary hearing loss and even long-term hearing injuries.
Take-aways
There are two main take-aways from the knowledge of hearing loss in relation to summer events. First, refrain from spending a prolonged amount of time at events where there are very loud noises, such as fireworks and concerts. If you do stay for the duration, sit further away from the main action. Mowing your lawn with breaks in between rather than all at once can reduce your chances of prolonged exposure to 100+ decibels. Second, don ear plugs when participating in noisy events. Concert venues and stores both sell ear plugs in a variety of types and colors.
