Tag: noise

Summer Noise: 4 Ways Your Hearing Aids Can Help

Turn Up Summer Fun With Hearing Aids

People don’t often think “Fun!” when they think of hearing aids. But today’s hearing aids are designed to meet your needs no matter what’s going on. Let’s check out a few ways your hearing aids can actually enhance your fun this summer.

Enjoy Group Conversations Outdoors

Most hearing aids today have a set of built-in capabilities ideal for highlighting speech in conversations. Directional microphones are designed to focus on whatever you’re facing. This is because you usually speak to someone in front of you. Some models of directional microphones do switch positions based on speech and sound cues.

Today’s hearing aids also do a very good job filtering out background noise. You can devote your energy to your conversation, not on cutting through clatter. It’s also becoming more and more feasible to use your smartphone as a microphone. For example: You place your smartphone on the picnic table, it picks up what everyone is saying, and it streams the audio to your hearing devices. It’s almost like you’re wearing conversation-enhancing headphones!

Muzzle Fireworks

Many of today’s digital hearing aids have a function called transient-noise suppression, impulse-noise reduction, or something similar. It’s a fancy way of saying that the hearing aid will lower the volume of sudden, brief noises — like dishes being dropped. You can still enjoy fireworks, but at a safe listening level. Check your hearing aid’s instructions, or check with your provider to find out if you have this functionality.

Change Settings Automatically

Many hearing aids now use a smartphone app. From controlling the volume to nudging the settings on your hearing aids, you can do a lot by utilizing these apps. One exciting capability is geotagging, or assigning a geographical “bookmark” to your favorite spots. Simply optimize your hearing aids for a location (for example, a park, baseball diamond, or your favorite restaurant), and apply a geotag. When you return to that spot, your settings will switch automatically!

Banish Wind Noise

Hearing aid microphones are placed just outside your ear canal or behind your ear. This means they may pick up a lot of wind noise. But ReSound has developed a breakthrough with the ReSound ONE device, which allows an extra microphone to be placed inside your ear canal, where the wind can’t reach it.

Contact us today to learn more about the built-in ways your hearing aids can boost your summer fun!

Dining Out? Dish on the Noise With SoundPrint

Dining Out? Dish on the Noise With SoundPrint

RESOURCE ALERT: Enjoy Dinner Out and Hear the Convo

Do restaurants seem to be getting noisier? If you think so, you’re not alone. And, what’s more, researchers have reported a connection between hearing loud music and choosing more calorie-heavy menu options. No joke!

We’ve found an app that can help you take your power back.

Meet SoundPrint, which lets the online community weigh in on noise levels at various venues, so you can better decide where you want to enjoy a night out — without sacrificing your hearing health.

SoundPrint, compatible with Android and iOS phones, takes noise measurement to another level with its decibel meter coupled with the ability to upload results to the user community via a searchable database. You can look for restaurants, gyms, subways, and other spots by categories such as “quiet,” “moderate,” “loud,” or “very loud” sound ratings.

The app lets you measure the noise level while at a restaurant, add comments like “quieter during lunch,” then upload that data to SoundPrint. Anyone with the app can view SoundPrint’s database of noise levels and user comments, then make an informed decision about which restaurants might pose a problem.

Though SoundPrint doesn’t replace a professional device, it may help approximate noise levels in a given space.

Oh, and about that research linking noise and food selections? The study, “Ambient Music and Food Choices: Can Music Volume Level Nudge Healthier Choices?” involved a series of field and lab investigations that turned up some interesting findings:

  • Lower-volume music, which can have a relaxing effect, leads to healthier food choices such as salad.
  • Higher-volume sounds, which can induce excitement and stress, inspire less wholesome picks like burgers and fries.

Who knew that curbing the volume could support not only your better-hearing goals but healthy eating too?

May Is Better Hearing Month – Spring Into It With Less Noise, More Joy!

Ahhh, spring! As power tools whir, ball games bloom, and concerts sprout, are your ears protected from the louder sounds of the season?

Some noises pack a bigger punch than your ears should take, so for Better Hearing Month this May, we’re sharing three quick tips to keep harmful volumes at bay.

TURN DOWN THE SOUND

Planning a hearty run in the fresh air with favorite tunes in your ears? It’s tempting to crank up the beats, but MP3 players can reach an ear-splitting 105 decibels. Better bet: Enjoy the sounds but turn them down to 50 percent maximum volume or lower.

GUARD YOUR EARS

Cutting that spring grass can feel so satisfying, but the noise of a gas mower can blow past the danger threshold of 85 decibels. Hearing protection such as earplugs or earmuffs help soften loud sounds and can be customized to your ears, so keep them on hand when using power equipment.

LIMIT YOUR EXPOSURE

Spring concerts, sports, and festivals abound, so help keep your hearing sound by wearing hearing protection and taking breaks from the festivities. Permanent hearing loss can result even from a single exposure to loud noise, making it important to give your ears a helpful rest from excess volumes.

Did you know?

  • An estimated one-third of hearing loss among children and adults worldwide is connected to noise exposure.
  • Excess noise can destroy the inner ear’s tiny, irreplaceable hair cells, which are crucial to healthy hearing.
  • Loud sounds can lead to tinnitus, a common and potentially debilitating problem of buzzing, humming, or ringing in the ears.
  • Quality hearing protection can curb noise intensity while letting music and other audio sound just as good.

As the season showers you with sound, make this the month to start protecting your hearing. Contact our caring team today to learn more about custom hearing protection for the whole family.

CLANG! SLAM! RIZZZ! VROOM!

From engines running and car doors closing to sanders whirring and air compressors humming, workplace noise comes with the territory at auto shops, and some of it can prove damaging to a mechanic’s ears and hearing health. An estimated 22 million American workers across various industries experience dangerous sound levels, according to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), yet excess noise is one of the most preventable causes of hearing loss.

Did you know?

  • Four million Americans work amid hazardous noise levels every day.
  • Occupational noise is a key culprit in hearing loss that occurs in adulthood.
  • Workers’ compensation for hearing loss disability amounts to about $242 million each year.
  • Some 34% of those exposed to workplace noise report that they skip hearing protection.
  • More than 31 million Americans ages 6 to 69 have permanent hearing damage due to noise.
  • Loud noise can destroy the inner ear’s hair cells, a crucial, irreplaceable part of healthy hearing.
  • Quality hearing protection reduces noise intensity while still allowing the sounds you want to hear.
  • Exposure to excess noise can lead to tinnitus, a common and potentially debilitating problem of buzzing, humming, or ringing in one or both ears.
  • Hearing loss due to noise exposure is cumulative and could go unnoticed until years later, but the damage may continue to occur and be irreversible.

In honor of National Protect Your Hearing Month in October, read on to learn more about the risks associated with working in an auto shop and ways to guard against noise hazards in any workplace.

How Loud Is Too Loud in an Auto Shop? Hint: Safer Levels Are Below 85 Decibels.

Some Typical Noise Hazards Decibel Level or “dBA”
Running engine 190
Air hammer on metal 112
Compressed air through nozzle 95
Disk sander 90
Car horn 110
Electric drill 102
Loaded impact wrench 102
Angle grinders Over 85
Industrial vacuum 85

 Recommended Standard According to NIOSH, workplace noise exposure “should be controlled below a level equivalent to 85 dBA for eight hours to minimize occupational noise induced hearing loss.”   Length of Time Before Damage Occurs Noise-related hearing loss can be temporary or permanent, immediate or gradual. It can occur from one-time exposure to a forceful sound, such as an explosion, or result from prolonged exposure to sounds at or louder than 85 decibels. The greater the sound, the faster the damage may occur.\ Both NIOSH and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) offer guidance for curbing workplace noise hazards. In fact, OSHA requires selected employers to implement a hearing-conservation program “whenever worker noise exposure is equal to or greater than 85 dBA for an 8 hour exposure or in the construction industry when exposures exceed 90 dBA for an 8 hour exposure.”

Some ways to control or protect against occupational noise hazards include:

  • Engineering controls, which involve solutions such as modifying or replacing equipment, substituting less-noisy alternatives, separating the noise source from workers, or conducting noise-reducing maintenance or repairs.
  • Administrative controls, including limiting the duration of exposure to noisy equipment, providing quiet spaces for respite away from noise, and running noisy machines during less-populated shifts.
  • Effective and properly worn hearing protection such as quality earplugs, headphones, and earmuffs designed to suppress noise.

If you have a noise-related hearing loss, you can be helped. Schedule an appointment with your local audiologist, who can conduct a case history, provide a complete diagnostic hearing evaluation, and make the appropriate recommendations — which could include custom hearing protection, treatment with hearing technology, or both — based on your individual results. ——————————– title tag: How to Protect Your Hearing From Noise Hazards on the Job meta description: Noise-related hearing loss is a serious issue and one that is easily preventable. Follow these helpful tips and protect your hearing! slug: protect-hearing-noise-hazards alt text: How to keep your ears safe on the job category: hearing loss, hearing health, hearing protection

During Football Season, Local Audiologist Makes Noise About Hearing Protection

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 19, 2017

During Football Season, Local Audiologist Makes Noise About Hearing Protection

Bartlesville, OK — This October is the American Academy of Audiology’s National Audiology Awareness Month, a time dedicated to raising awareness about audiology and the importance of hearing protection. Making this topic relevant and timely to the community, Advanced Hearing Care reminds football fans (and arena-sports fans alike) that the best offense against hearing loss is a good defense.

“Your hearing is a key element to fully enjoying your time at the game. Ironically, the things we love — from cheering and jeering to the halftime performance — are all things that could hurt our hearing. The better you protect your hearing, the longer you’ll be able to experience the things you love,” says Stephanie Moore, Audiologist, of Advanced Hearing Care

Loud stadiums have become a source of pride for fans and teams across the country, but with stadium noise exceeding safe decibel (sound pressure) levels, it’s also a source of hearing loss. Cheering fans can push decibel (dB) levels well into the hundreds. At these levels, it only takes 1 to 15 minutes for the sound to damage your ears.

“Cheering while the away team is in a huddle gives football fans the opportunity to get in on the action, but football isn’t the only sport that puts fans at risk. From vuvuzelas to referee whistles and fireworks, loud noise at sporting events is something all spectators should be aware of,” says Dr. Moore. “The more awareness we raise about noise-induced hearing loss [NIHL], the more people we can help.”

NIHL is damage done to the ears by exposure to loud noise; the amount of damage is dependent upon the decibel level and the length of time you’re exposed. Repeated exposure to sound levels above 85 dB can cause permanent hearing loss. Rather than not being able to hear at all, high-frequency sounds are usually the first to go, meaning you may be unable to hear s, f, sh, ch, h, or soft c sounds.

National Audiology Awareness Month encourages regular hearing checkups combined with hearing protection to preserve hearing health. The focus includes helping those living with untreated hearing loss by offering educational pieces around technological advances in hearing aids.

Press Contact:
Stephanie Moore, AuD
Advanced Hearing Care
918-333-9992
info@drstephaniemoore.com, www.drstephaniemoore.com
About Advanced Hearing Care- Advanced Hearing Care is a full-service audiology practice proud to be bringing better hearing to the people of Bartlesville for 11 years. From Bartlesville our AudigyCertified™ hearing care practice has helped thousands of patients with their hearing, tinnitus, and balance disorders — and offers state-of-the-art diagnostic testing and expert fitting of hearing technology.

Hearing protection is vital

The most common cause of hearing loss that we see in our clinic is noise induced hearing loss. Many people do not realize how hazardous the levels of the lawn mower, weed eaters and leaf blowers are and they are doing yard work weekly. Don’t forget that power tools, such as saws and drills can reach dangerous levels. Many people assume just shooting guns for hunting or target shooting are bad, but concerts and iPod can also reach high decibel levels too.

We also specialize in hearing protection, so please contact our office for help and guidance in protecting your hearing.

Better Hearing and Speech Month: 5 Tips to Step Up Your Hearing Game

Did you know? About 360 million children and adults — more than ve percent of the global population — have disabling hearing loss, according to the World Health Organization.

The good news? Not only can most hearing loss be helped with state-of-the-art hearing technology or other options, but simple steps can help you prevent some types of hearing impairment altogether. With the 90th celebration of Better Hearing Month just around the corner in May, here are ve tips to help you and your loved ones take charge for better hearing every day.

Know the Signs
Frequently asking people to repeat themselves, turning up the TV, having di culty understanding phone conversations, complaining about noise or earaches — these
and other signs point to potential hearing loss. Detecting it early can reduce the risk of academic, social, physical, and other problems.

Curb Noise Exposure
More than 31 million Americans ages 6 to 69 have permanent hearing damage due to noise, per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Reducing exposure to sounds above 85 decibels, curbing use of MP3 players, and wearing earplugs even when mowing or using leaf blowers, snowblowers, and weed wackers can go a long way.

Partner With Your School
Teachers and administrators are critical to helping kids hear their best during the school day, with classroom seating arrangements, loop and FM systems, closed captioning, and other supportive options. They can also identify possible signs of hearing loss, such as decreased engagement and changes in grades or behaviors.

Keep Hearing Aids in Top Shape
If you or your loved ones are already hearing better through today’s advanced hearing technology, help keep the devices in their best shape with a professional clean and check. Also, keep extra batteries on hand at home and on the go.

Get a Hearing Checkup
Take the whole family for professional hearing evaluations at least once a year, just as you would for their eyes or teeth. Timing the visits before summer camp or the new school year, for example, can help you catch any hearing di culties before they a ect your child’s learning and development.

Our audiology experts are here to help you and your loved ones hear your best. For more tips on taking charge of your hearing health or to schedule a hearing evaluation, call our o ce today.

It’s Summer Time And The Best Time To Protect Your Hearing

Actually we need to be protecting our hearing year round, but summer comes to mind most commonly as more people are mowing, using weed eaters and leaf blowers. Typically all of that equipment has potentially damaging decibel levels to our hearing. And once you damage or lose your hearing, we cannot grow it back. It’s just gone. So take some steps to protect your hearing this summer and the rest of the year. Hearing protection comes in a variety of styles and strengths. That is one of our specialties and please contact us if you need guidance.

  1. Wear hearing protection devices while mowing and using loud equipment. Keep in mind 4th of July fireworks are loud as well as winter time chainsaws.
  2. Concerts both indoors and outdoors can be loud and damaging.
  3. Hunting and shooting are hazardous.
  4. If you have to be in a noise environment, such as a sporting event and you cannot or do not have hearing protection then limit your exposure time.
  5. Some motorcycles and tractors (especially those without cabs) can be dangerous to your hearing.
  6. Music headphones can get really loud being so close to your eardrums, so turn them down or limit your time. Also invest in decibel limiting headphones.

Hopefully those are some helpful ideas to protect your hearing. Please contact us if you have any questions as we are happy to help.

Sincerely,

Dr. Stephanie R. Moore
Audiologist

6 Ways You Can Damage Your Hearing Without Knowing It

Noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) is the most common type of hearing loss, but folks aren’t always sure where their hearing loss comes from. There are some fairly obvious ways to damage your hearing, such as listening to music at excessive volumes, or firing weapons without hearing protection. Then there are situations where protecting your hearing doesn’t seem very important, but doing so might actually prevent further damage. Consider the following sneaky causes of hearing loss.

1) WORKPLACE NOISE

Although many construction and manufacturing jobs state that hearing protection should be worn at all times on the job, these warnings are not always adhered to. Those who wear hearing protection may not be wearing it at all times — it may be removed to talk with co-workers or supervisors despite close proximity to high-noise-producing machines, and depending upon how loud those machines are, damage can be caused fairly quickly. Even with hearing protection, noise damage can slowly accumulate and wear on the delicate hair cells in the inner ear.

2) OTOTOXIC MEDICATION

Ototoxic medications are drugs such as painkillers that have chemical properties that make them toxic to the sensory cells in the ear. Painkillers taken in high quantities create not only a risk for dependency but for losing hearing as well; strong pain medications first cause a ringing in the ears before beginning to have adverse effects on hearing, but the impairment often goes away after discontinued use.

3) SMOKING

Because of the impact and high profile of major diseases caused by smoking, potential hearing damage as a side effect of smoking often flies under the radar. But nicotine is a vasoconstrictor that causes blood vessels to shrink slightly, restricting blood flow to the inner ear and preventing oxygen from reaching it. Over a lifetime, this “suffocates” the ear.

4) DRIVING A CONVERTIBLE

Driving more often creates potential for developing or worsening hearing loss, thanks mostly to the sounds of the road and other passing vehicles. Some cars dampen sound, but convertibles lose that extra layer of “quiet ride” protection, leaving ears exposed to potentially dangerous noise levels around them. An October 2009 study found that driving some convertibles at speeds between 50 and 70 miles per hour exposed drivers to noise levels of 88 to 90 dB — beyond the level where damage begins to occur (85 dB).

5) PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION

The squeal and grind of light rails, trains, and even buses coming to a stop have the potential to cause hearing damage to daily riders of public transportation because they’re constantly exposed to noise. Rough or curved tracks prevent smooth rides, leading to more noise. And those who are waiting for their bus or train are exposed to potential traffic on a busy street, which can sometimes reach levels of 100 dB or more.

6) ATTENDING SPORTING EVENTS

Due in part to the nature of sporting events — watching athletes perform — the danger of noise is often forgotten. Many stadiums still manifest crowd noise dangerous enough to damage hearing. Seattle’s CenturyLink Field last year posted a decibel record of 137.6, enough to cause permanent damage in 30 seconds. Noise levels of 115 dBs or more — about the equivalent of a concert — are not uncommon but are safe to experience for only 15 minutes.

Call today for your custom-fit hearing protection! 918.213.4405

Introducing DefendEar!

We are excited to now be offering the full line of DefendEar from Westone custom-fit hearing protection earplugs. Whether you are a hunter, Motorsport enthusiast, or simply someone who is often in the presence of loud, damaging levels of noise, the custom-molded DefendEar is the most comfortable, high-performance hearing protection available.

DefendEar Digital even offers amplification so that you can hear what you want while protecting yourself from loud noise that can harm your hearing. It’s an option that we’ve found is particularly popular with hunters! Give us a call today for a FREE hearing protection consultation to learn more.