Our hearing helps keep us connected to each other. But most of us take it for granted until we notice we’re not hearing as well as we’d like to, or someone tells us we’re missing things.

What can go wrong?

The world can be damaging to our ears.

Noise commonly accelerates natural age-related hearing loss, and hearing damage can occur from one off exposure to loud sound or from being exposed to moderately loud sound for an extended period of time.

Hearing damage can also arise:

• as a result of head trauma;
• if the eardrum is perforated;
• from some cancer treatments;
• as a result of taking certain medications; and
• from chronic and untreated ear infections.

It’s never too late to start looking after your ears

You can’t reverse hearing loss, but you can prevent further damage by adhering to these simple tips:

Heed sound limit warnings

Sound is considered harmful when it exceeds 85 decibels (dB), and you must also factor in safe exposure time limits.

For example, you can be exposed to 85 dB standing on the corner of a busy intersection, and that sound will become damaging to your hearing if you stand there for longer than 8 hours a day.

Safe exposure limits halve with every 3 dB sound pressure increase.

Limit the amount of time you spend in a loud environment

For every hour of loud sound you’re exposed to, remove yourself from the source and allow yourself at least ten minutes of quiet.

Listen to your ears! They’re sensitive to dangerous noise, and pain receptors act as a warning.

Buy the best quality hearing protection

Buy hearing protection and wear it when you know you’re going to be around loud sound. Customised ear plugs offer superior protection.

For musicians and concert goers, special musician’s earplugs limit damaging sound intensity without distorting or compromising music sound quality.

Our clinicians can help you.

Turn it down!

Your music is too loud if you can’t clearly understand someone talking at a normal level from about a metre away.

When you listen to music through earbuds or headphones, you’re probably damaging your hearing if the person next to you can hear what you’re listening to.

Test volume levels by removing your headphones and holding them at arm’s length.

Avoid swimmer’s ear

Waterlogged ears can result in inflammation and infection. Avoid this by wearing swimmer’s ear plugs and/or a neoprene hood or swimming cap.

Always drain your ears thoroughly after water immersion.