Hearing health is one of the most important aspects of living a fulfilling and joyful life. But what many people don’t realize is that hearing loss can happen gradually and without any warning signs. However, there are steps that we can take to protect our hearing now and in the future. Hearing protection is a growing concern with the rise of noise pollution and the increased use of power tools. Hearing loss is permanent and irreversible which makes hearing protection important.
Wearing hearing protection can help protect your hearing from noise that may lead to permanent damage such as tinnitus or even deafness. They can also protect your hearing from sudden loud noises such as gunfire or explosions that could cause instant and severe pain.
What Causes Hearing Loss?
There are four major causes of hearing loss or tinnitus. These are noise induced hearing loss, aging-related hearing loss, earwax or otosclerosis. Noise-induced hearing loss is the second most common form of hearing impairment in the United States after aging-related hearing loss and is caused by overexposure to noise. Noise induced hearing loss can be permanent and irreversible and will only worsen over time if not treated.
Why is Prevention Important?
Hearing is one of the most important senses in our body, which helps us to understand the world around us. We should always protect our hearing. Noise induced hearing loss can be prevented by following these simple steps:
- Protecting your ears from noise using ear plugs, earmuffs or other devices.
- Avoiding prolonged exposure to loud noises.
- Trying to avoid moderately loud noises for longer periods of time.
How Does Protection Work?
The noise that we are exposed to every day is not always good for our ears. There are many jobs that can cause hearing loss just by providing auditory input for too long. One of the ways to protect our ears from these dangers is to wear earplugs, which can reduce the sound level of the environment and prevent it from reaching your eardrums and damaging them.
There are two types of ear protection: plugs and muffs. Plug earmuffs work by blocking outside noise with foam or silicone disposable tips, while the other type blocks the noise with a technical protective device.
Earplugs vs. Earmuffs
Earplugs come in different shapes and sizes. They can be foam or silicone and can be custom made to fit your ears. They are inserted into the ear canal to help reduce harmful noise levels. Earmuffs cover the whole ear, but they do not fit as snugly as earplugs and they don’t work quite as well to eliminate noise exposure.
Earmuffs and plugs work similarly but there is a big difference between them. Earplugs seal off your ear canal, which means that you will not hear anything outside of the plugged ear while wearing them. Earmuffs also help protect your ears from loud noises, but unlike with plugs they will allow you to hear sounds coming from outside of the plugged or covered ears.
Curious about hearing protection options? Give Norriton Hearing Center a call today at (610) 228-2779. We’ll walk you through what the best options are for your specific needs.
