There are an increasing number of cases being reported by doctors of young children losing their hearing. Many of these patients are predicted to have the hearing capacity of a 60 year old by the age of 30. However this epidemic is not down to diseases or a virus but the rising exposure to high volumes of noise.

This phenomenon is happening because many young children are failing to observe advice on noise levels and listening to their music with the volume at the maximum level in their earphones. This kind of concentrated noise damages the ears, often beyond repair. Many parents have no idea that by taking their children to sporting or music events they are exposing them to volumes far too loud for their developing ears. Dr Martin, Professor of preventive medicine at Oregon Health and Science University in Portland said, "If a sound reaches 85 decibels and over an extended period, it can permanently damage hearing. The safe level for an iPod is 80 per cent on the volume slider. If you listen to music at that level, you can safely listen for 90 minutes a day."

If you consider that a normal conversation would occur at 60 decibels of sound, a level that is completely harmless to the ears, when exposed to a loud concert or busy motorway, often at around 120dB, this can be very irritating. Prolonged exposure to these levels can cause serious damage. Exposure to noises above 150dB such as a jet engine or pneumatic drill can cause instant irreparable damage. Even noises at a constant low level can cause high blood pressure, stress, anxiety and insomnia.

If you stand at arms length from someone with your music on in your earphones, you should still be able to hear them talk, if you can't, the volume is too loud. Exposure to high levels of noise may not only cause physical damage to your ears, but cause Tinnitus. Tinnitus is a dreadful affliction that creates a constant high pitched ringing noise in the ear and can often take over a person's life. Although some cases are treatable, it usually remains present and victims are forced to suffer an unbearable ringing noise in their ear for the rest of their life.

In developed countries, 12% of children aged 12 to 19 have hearing loss to some extent that is caused entirely by exposure to loud noise. Although there are laws regarding noise levels in a workplace, there are no laws about personal exposure.

Treating the rising number of cases of hearing loss is requiring hospitals to create more jobs for nurses and has called for more nursing jobs Wessex.

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Tags: claim, cochlea, deaf, deafness, decibels, health, hearing loss, ipod, Ipods, sign language, tinnitus

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