Do you have a hobby that you enjoy? Hobbies are an excellent way to escape daily stressors and spend some time doing an activity you’re passionate about. Even better, engaging in your hobbies has an impact on mental health, social connection and overall well-being. There are a few popular hobbies that require some extra protection, including hearing protection. Let’s explore them.
How Loud Noise Damages Hearing
Deep in the inner ear, there are thousands of sensory cells that are critical to your ability to hear. Their function is to collect sound information from the sound waves entering your ear and transmit it to the brain. These sensory cells are delicate and do not regenerate or heal themselves when damaged.
Loud noises send powerful sound waves into the ear. These sound waves are forceful enough to seriously harm those sensory cells. A single instance of a very loud noise, around 120 decibels, can break them immediately, and sustained exposure to elevated noise levels, around 100 decibels, will wear them away over time, like erosion.
Some hobbies expose you to those levels of noise. Here are some of them.
Hunting and Shooting Firearms
When you think of loud hobbies, firearms may be the first one that comes to mind. As mentioned above, sounds at 120 decibels can cause instantaneous hearing damage; a gunshot can clock in anywhere from 130 decibels to 165 decibels. To make matters worse, the source of the noise is right next to your ears.
Indoor gun ranges compound the sound issue further, as those powerful sound waves from the gunshot—both from your firearm and from your neighbors’—bounce off the walls back to you. In the field or at an outdoor range, these sound waves can escape.
Music
Whether you’re a musician, an avid concertgoer, an audiophile or all three, music can reach dangerous noise levels. Live music performances can reach 110 decibels, especially if you’re standing next to an amp or speaker. If you enjoy listening to music at home, don’t get complacent: headphones can be an insidious source of loud noise.
Carpentry
It can be so satisfying to create a piece of art or furniture for your home. But bear in mind that drills, power saws, sanders and all your other power tools are incredibly loud. And, as with the firearms discussed above, they are often placed very close to your ear as you lean over the project.
Motorsports and Motorcycles
Motorcycles, ATVs and other recreational vehicles give you that adrenaline rush and sense of adventure. And of course, as you’re already aware, they’re very loud. Here’s a fun fact for you: the biggest cause of hearing damage with motor vehicles isn’t the engine—it’s the wind! Wind noise swirling around in your helmet can reach insane volume levels, and the faster you drive, the louder it gets.
Video Games
Modern video games are complex and immersive, so developers put a lot of work into sound and audio effects. In fact, video games often emulate many of the things we’ve already discussed here: firearms, explosions and engine noise, and often with a musical soundtrack to create the desired atmosphere. And then, many games feature online voice chatting, meaning players may be shouting or cheering loudly together. Playing your video games with the volume high is dangerous enough, but most gamers use headphones or headsets, blasting all that noise straight into the ear.
How to Choose the Best Hearing Protection
We’ve covered a lot of types of hobbies here, and there is no single hearing protection solution that works for all of these. Rather, you’ll want to seek out hearing protection that best fits your hobby. For things like carpentry and firearms, specialty earmuffs can block the incoming sound waves quite effectively. With music and video games, you’ll need to be mindful of your volume levels, and we encourage you to take frequent listening breaks to let your ears rest.
For custom hearing protection, like musician’s earplugs or specialty hunting earmuffs, which can tone down the noise levels without distorting what you hear, chat with an audiologist for recommendations.
If you’re showing signs of noise-induced hearing loss, or if you enjoy any of the above hobbies (or a different loud hobby that we didn’t discuss here) and want to be proactive with your hearing health, contact Decibel Hearing Services. We’d be happy to schedule a hearing exam for you and discuss ways you can protect your hearing while still enjoying your favorite hobby.