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Ways In Which You Can Save Your Hearing

By: Jose Jimenez

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The world is becoming a noisier place, and what we listen to have to get louder as the background noise increases. This has meant that the number of Americans who are either deaf or suffer from hearing difficulties has risen to over 28 million.

However, a lot of hearing loss can be effectively prevented or delayed. The medical treatments that are available today and the newer more effective hearing aids mean that many more people can keep their hearing.

More young people are getting diagnosed as hearing loss sufferers as the levels of damaging sounds has increased. Roughly 10 million Americans have irreversible damage to their ears from dangerous noise levels and 30 million are exposed to damaging levels on a daily basis.

Men and women between the ages of 45 to 64 are likely suffer the most with a 365% loss in men and an 85% loss in women. Thankfully hearing loss caused by middle ear infections in children, other infections and noise levels, can be prevented.

Hearing tests are recommended straight after birth and at regular intervals throughout life. Any problems with a newborn baby's hearing can now be accurately diagnosed with a new and inexpensive test called otoacoustic emissions. By the time a baby reaches six months it is already fast developing the language skills it needs for its life ahead and by testing its hearing early can ensure it gets the best chance to make the most of this important time.

The truly wonderful gift of hearing is down to the fact that parts of our ear such as the ear drum and the tiny bones that are present vibrate when sound waves, collected by the outer ear hit them. Hearing occurs because nerves transport electrical signals to the brain from cells that vibrate inside the cochlea. It is not possible for these cells to be repaired if they are damaged or if they die.

Some people who damage their ears from dangerous noise levels may start to suffer from a condition known as tinnitus which is the presence of a constant ringing in their ears. Around 40 million Americans are known to suffer from tinnitus but most learn to live with it.

The effect of tinnitus can be the slight cases where the noises sound like crickets which can be soothing when trying to get off to sleep. Some find the sounds really maddening and are unable to ignore them. Approximately 10 million people suffer from severe tinnitus, and 80% do manage to find relief, but as of yet no cure has been found.

Tinnitus was to blame for the actor who played Captain Kirk in Star Trek, William Shatner, to contemplate suicide due to its tormenting effects. He believes it is possible that explosions let off on set of Star Trek could have been the cause of his condition.

Here are some examples of ways in which you will protect your hearing. In many situations you should wear protective earplugs. Everyday home equipment that produces over 90 decibels of sound such as lawnmowers and even some vacuum cleaners can cause temporary hearing loss if used for a long duration. Unprotected use of equipment that produces over 100 decibels for a period of 15 minutes can cause hearing damage. Any exposure to above 110 decibels such as from rock concerts, racing cars and chainsaws can cause permanent hearing loss.

Ear infections must be treated as soon as possible. An ear infection can occur without accompanying pain or fever. In fact no symptoms may be present apart from a loss of hearing. If you feel that your hearing may be starting to suffer then make an appointment with a doctor and have a hearing test done.

Article Source: http://depositarticles.com/

Visit this site for further information on sensorineural hearing loss. Here is further info on hearing disorders.

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