Do you enjoy going to music festivals or checking out live music at Savannah clubs? If so, it’s important for you to take steps to protect your ears and avoid hearing loss.
Loud Music Can Cause Hearing Loss
One of the more common causes of hearing loss is loud noise. Repeated exposure to noises louder than 85 decibels (dB) can cause noise-induced hearing loss. This is roughly the volume of city traffic. Live concerts can easily get as loud as 100-120 dB.
If you have been to concerts without using hearing protection devices, it’s likely you’ve experienced one or more of the following:
- Temporary hearing loss
- Muffled hearing
- Feeling of fullness in your ears
- Ear pain
- Tinnitus (ringing in the ear)
While these conditions can be temporary, enough exposure over time will damage the cells of your inner ear and lead to permanent hearing loss.
Protect Your Ears with Earplugs
Thankfully, you don’t have to miss out on experiencing live music to protect your ears. Research has shown that wearing earplugs is an effective method of preventing hearing loss and other hearing-related symptoms when listening to live music.
A 2016 study tracked concertgoers in Amsterdam. Half were given earplugs to wear, while the other half were not. Researchers found that those who did not wear earplugs during the event experienced higher rates of temporary hearing loss and tinnitus than those who wore them. Specifically:
- Only 8% of participants who wore earplugs experienced temporary hearing loss, and 12% experienced tinnitus.
- Compared to 42% of participants who did not wear earplugs experienced temporary hearing loss, and 40% experienced tinnitus.
Custom Earplugs Provide a Better Listening Experience
You have several options when deciding what type of earplugs are right for you.
Regular foam earplugs are inexpensive and effective at reducing noise-related hearing damage. However, they work by muffling sound. This makes them a less than ideal option for when you’re trying to listen to music.
Custom earplugs provide a much better music listening experience. They are:
- Built to fit the shape of your ears, providing maximum comfort
- Durable and made to be reused
They can help lower the volume to a safe level without compromising the quality of the music. While more expensive than the foam option, if you are a music lover, custom earplugs are a valuable investment in your hearing health.