Protect your hearing
According to the charity the Royal National Institute for the Deaf, there are 18 million people in the UK with some form of hearing loss. While many of these are older adults, they may have developed hearing loss because of their exposure to noise when they were younger, so it is important for people of any age to protect themselves from noise that could damage their hearing. Many more people suffer with tinnitus or ringing in the ears, which sufferers can find very disabling.
Protecting against hearing loss is particularly important in young children. Because young children are still developing physically, the potential is there for much more damage to occur to their hearing than to an adult’s hearing. Children being carried, or in pushchairs don’t have the option of moving away from a source of noise, and they may also be too young to make their parents / carers aware they are being affected. Not all ear muffs work or work effectively to provide adequate protection. So the advice for those attending festivals with children is to ensure they are wearing reliable ear protection, that it is being worn correctly and that they are standing well away from the speaker area or front of the stages.
Hearing loss can be caused by a single short exposure to an intense sound e.g. an explosion, or by more prolonged exposure to loud noise, such as amplified live music. Hearing protection is recommended whenever a person’s hearing is exposed to noise levels of 85 decibels or above for any length of time. Heavy city traffic is usually about 85 decibels, meanwhile an ambulance siren is about 120 decibels. Most live music gigs are also estimated to be generating noise levels of between 100 and 120 decibels according to the UK Health and Safety Executive. Noise levels of 120 decibels or more for even a couple of minutes could lead to lifelong hearing loss.
The distance between the sound source and the individual needs to be taken into account as well as the length of time that individual is exposed to the noise. Adults should consider wearing ear protection such as ear plugs or ear mufflers, or moving away from the speaker area.