To get some expert advice on the topic of general hearing health we spoke with Mandy Nyhof, an audiologist with 26 years experience and the director of Brindabella Hearing and Speech Centre.
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“The thing that springs to mind for me first is the noise exposure,” begins Mandy, “and the thing is, it’s a dosage effect”.
What that means is “the louder it is, the shorter the period you can be exposed to it before permanent damage is done.”
For example, “an explosion can be done in under a second but it is so loud that if you’re not protected from it properly you can suffer permanent hearing damage immediately.”
As for lower levels, “You can be subjected to a constant 85db for up to eight hours, or if it’s just 3db higher, you can only have 88db for four hours before it is considered unsafe.”
That should give you some perspective of how dramatically the safe time drops as the volume increases.
In reality, you’ll be hard pressed finding an environment where the noise level is so constant for so long. There will usually be peaks that can do you damage in a much shorter amount time.
Many common causes of excess noise exposure are recreational. Personal music devices, big car stereos, and some night clubs can all cause harm, as can some motorsport events. The burnout pad at Summernats comes to mind.
Current devices like smart phones are taking hearing damage seriously, either limiting the maximum volume or at least giving you a warning about the risk of prolonged exposure whenever you turn the volume up too far.
When it comes to workplaces we don’t often think about the live musicians, and roadies, who are getting a higher lever of exposure than they should.
Mandy points out that there is custom hearing protection available for musicians to take the edge off those dangerous noise levels.
Repeated exposure is a problem too. You may have ringing in your ears and if it’s not too bad your ears may recover. However, if you’re subjected to it night after night they can’t recover and that ringing won’t go away.
In other workplaces “we’ve gotten better at protecting people from noise” Mandy observes.
“In the ACT for instance, there’s more monitoring and protecting happening, with better regulations and more compliance checks going on.”
The other aspect of looking after your ear health is understanding the role that your ear wax plays.
“It’s a big misnomer that having wax is a reflection of personal hygiene, but this isn’t true” Mandy illustrates.
“When it comes to putting things in your ears it’s exactly what your grandmother told you; nothing smaller than your elbow.
“The simple fact is, you don’t need to clean what you can’t see.
“If you do start trying to get in there with ear buds or something else you can easily push some of the wax in further and damage your ear drum.
“You don’t need to clean inside them it unless it’s actually causing a problem. Even then, you need to have it done by a professional either by syringe or with suction.
“Ear wax is designed to protect your ear drum from dirt and dust.”
Other than that, “If you notice any change in your hearing, or how they feel, or any discharge, then that’s when you need to seek assistance from your doctor.”
To find out more about Brindabella Hearing and Speech Centre visit www.hearingandspeech.com.au.
