What parents can do to protect their childrens hearing including the risks that should be avoided

Hearing health is often something taken for granted by parents.Your baby receives an initial hearing test at a few days old and then you all go about your business … until of course, sometimes it’s too late and damage is done to your child’s hearing, oftentimes through exposure to seemingly inanimate household objects.So, what decibel level is safe for a baby/child?Most audiologists will recommend hearing protection for noise exposure or sounds louder than 85 decibels, and government guidelines mandate that employees not be exposed to noise of 85 decibels or louder for longer than eight hours.But it’s not all about the decibel level, it also comes down to duration of exposure.Consistent exposure to sounds over 80 decibels could also be damaging so it’s important to limit both the intensity and duration of noise.It’s easy to think your baby doesn’t require ear protection in the early days because of how surprisingly oblivious new babies can be to loud noises when they first arrive home.A newborn could go to a loud restaurant or rock concert, and they’ll probably sleep soundly, despite the noise.They’ll also likely sleep in a central living area with full light and the bustle of a busy home in the background.This is because babies are born relatively insensitive to the world around them.This helps to numb the discomfort of the birthing process and allows them to concentrate on establishing feeding and gaining weight.After three to four weeks, this insensitivity begins to wane and babies “wake up,” becoming more alert and unsettled by external stimuli.It’s really important in the first few weeks, even if your baby is completely insensitive to sound, that you still protect their little ears.As children grow loud sounds present as even louder for them than they do adults.

This is because the ear canal is smaller in children.The sound pressure generated in the ears of a child is greater than that of adults.In other words, loud sounds for us ...