Protect Yourself Against Hearing Loss

Noise-induced hearing loss is becoming a larger health crisis every year, especially among those who listen to CD and mp3 players on a regular basis.

A recent article on CNN.com takes a close look at this issue, and points out the following:

1. Researchers are finding that growing numbers of students and people in their 30s and 40s are suffering from noise-induced hearing loss, as well as chronic ringing in their ears, a condition known as tinnitis.

2. The most common causes of noise-induced hearing loss are regular use of CD and mp3 players, attending noisy concerts and clubs, using firearms, using power tools, and regular use of recreational vehicles like motorcycles and snowmobiles.

3. Noise-induced hearing loss can take multiple exposures and years to discover.

4. A survey published this summer by Australia's National Acoustic Laboratories reported that approximately 25 percent of people using portable music players had daily noise exposures high enough to cause hearing damage.

5. Research by Britain's Royal National Institute for Deaf People found that people between 18 to 24 years of age were more likely than other adults to exceed safe listening limits.

For more information on noise-induced hearing loss and some guidelines on how to protect your hearing, view: Protect Yourself From Hearing Loss.