Protect your child’s hearing!
Our environment is getting louder and louder and that includes schools. Each year you should take the time to get a hearing evaluation for your child. Tests are free, non-invasive, and child-friendly. Getting a baseline hearing level for your child ensures that you will be able to keep tabs on his or her hearing health throughout the school years. The goal is to protect your child’s hearing and here we will review how you can do so.
School noise
Schools have more noise issues than you may think. There are loud things going on at school; hallways, sporting events, and band practice. All of these things can have noise decibel ratings over the safety limit of 85. Repeated exposure to noisy environments can result in hearing loss, according to the National Institute on Deafness and other Communication Disorders.
Noise-induced hearing loss is preventable, but 5 million children in the United States suffer from this condition and more are diagnosed each year.
The first step towards preventing noise-induced hearing loss is discussing the importance of hearing and hearing safety with your child. Explain to them how sound processing works in the ear and stress that those tiny hair cells that help with the processing are not replaceable. And now would be a good time to give them a little refresher chat about not sticking things in their ears like pen caps or a stylus if their ears itch.
How about the bus ride?
Kids use the bus and other downtimes to listen to music or play games on portable electronic devices. It is very tempting for them to keep hiking up the volume, so they can hear it over the noise of the bus and the other children. If your child is using headphones with their device, talk to them about acceptable volume levels. Better yet, get headphones that are volume limiting.
Music lessons
Marching band, orchestra, maybe the brass ensemble all great activities for children. But long and frequent exposure to loud music can lead to noise-induced hearing loss. Drums and instruments such as tubas and trumpets can damage the hearing of those playing them as well as those near them. If your child is in a band, talk to the music teacher about protecting your child’s ears during rehearsals.
There are special earplugs called musician’s earplugs or high fidelity earplugs that are available, so your child will still be able to hear the instruments clearly but at a softer level.
You can always talk to the staff at Hearing Group about custom ear protection for use at musical rehearsals or if your child is a hunter or involved in shooting sports.
The playground
While your child is on the playground he or she may be exposed to excessive noise. There’s traffic, sirens, train whistles, and nearby construction that may be near the area. Visit the playground during recess to hear what might be around for yourself. Teachers working on the playground may be so used to background noise, they don’t realize it is there.
If you have concerns, bring them up to the school administration. Tell your children if there is noise outside that hurts their ears, they should move away from the noise source.
On the field
Team sports are great, they promote teamwork and fitness. But, any school-run sports programs should have a full complement of protection for your child, including ear protection. Baseball and softball players should wear helmets to protect their ears and temples and wrestlers should have ear guards.
Swimmers should protect their ears with earplugs. If your child wears a hearing device, they should either be removed or protected with custom ear protection that the Hearing Group can discuss with you.
Invest in earplugs
Earplugs are small and fit nicely into a backpack or purse. They are certainly less expensive and a lot more portable than noise-canceling headphones or earmuffs. Some come with a neck strap, so your child can’t lose them if they come out. Make sure they know how to insert them properly.
Foam earplugs should be rolled and inserted snuggly into the ear canal. The squished plug puffs back up and fills the area.
Be a good role model
It’s a lot easier to get your child to take a hearing test if you tell him or her you also take a test every year.
Wear ear protection if you are mowing the lawn or using loud power tools like a chainsaw, power nailer, or drill. Keep the volume of the television and the stereo at a normal level and keep the radio in the car at a decent volume level, too.