| How Loud is too Loud? Church music and your child's hearing |
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Question The music is really loud in my church. I’m worried about my kids’ ears. How can I tell if it’s too loud? And if it plays for about 20 minutes a week, is that enough to be harmful? Answer Based upon my experiences in various houses of worship, sound levels typically don’t reach levels of concern. However, if you’re still worried you should speak with your church’s music director. HOW TO TELL IF NOISE IS TOO LOUD As your question accurately indicates, the potential for hearing loss depends on how loud the noise is and for how long you’re exposed. Say you’re talking to Joe. He’s standing 3 feet away. If he’s speaking normally, you’re hearing his voice at about 60 decibels. If he’s a soft speaker, it’s more like 40. Loud is about 80. All sound below 75 decibels is safe regardless of the exposure length. Although most people can tolerate up to approximately 120 decibels (in a short burst), it’s wise to limit exposure at levels above 75. As loudness increases, hearing-loss potential increases, especially if that exposure is for long periods, such as at concerts, fireworks displays and auto races. Hearing loss also can result from a short-term traumatic noise exposure from a nearby exploding firecracker or truck backfiring. As a rule of thumb, if you can’t hear people talking 3 feet away or if they have to shout to be heard at that distance, the noise is too loud and could be damaging. HOW TO USE IPODS, HEADPHONES, SAFELY A potential risk to your children’s hearing might be in your own house. Audiologists (professionals specializing in hearing) are seeing more young people with hearing loss due to noise exposure. Some have attributed this to personal listening devices. If you’re standing within 3 feet of a child wearing headphones and you can hear the music or the child can’t hear you speaking, the music is too loud. A person wearing headphones should be able to communicate with others in a normal fashion. Help your children set their devices’ loudness level in a quiet environment. Advise them not to turn up the intensity to compensate for external sounds (like traffic noise) or for ill-fitting headphones that thus don’t block out enough noise. HOW TO PROTECT YOUR HEARING When they can’t avoid loud sounds, I encourage my patients to use hearing protectors, especially when they’re using power tools, lawnmowers and so on. You can find earplugs at local pharmacies. A growing trend is for concertgoers or children in bands to wear musician’s earplugs, some of which audiologists can custom mold. They allow the wearer to hear the sound’s quality, just quieter. Prices range from well under $20 (noncustom) to around $150. RINGING IN THE EARS In addition to (or instead of) hearing loss, people might experience ringing in the ears—tinnitus—which can be annoying and a warning sign that hearing might be compromised and more easily susceptible to future damage. Unfortunately, hearing loss due to noise exposure is permanent because it affects the inner ear’s delicate structures. But with all those concertgoing Baby Boomers hitting the hearing market, there are some cool-looking hearing aids out there, along with discrete ones. Audiologist ROBERT W. WOODS PH.D., C.C.C.A., F.A.A.A., A.B.A., is founding director of Speech and Hearing Associates in New Jersey and board member of the New Jersey Speech-Language-Hearing Association. Last updated and/or approved October 2008. Comments (0)
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by Robert W. Woods, Ph.D., C.C.C.A., F.A.A.A., A.B.A.
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