Noisy Toys, Hearing, and Communication
With the holiday season quickly approaching, you may be focused on reconnecting with friends and family, shopping for gifts, and cooking tasty meals. While you find yourself shopping for toys and other gifts for your loved ones, it’s important to remember the impact these items can have on hearing ability.
Sound Levels of Everyday Items
Everyday noises can be damaging to hearing, especially if exposed to on a prolonged or even regular basis. Toys and other gifts can fall into this category as they can produce sounds that exceed the safe threshold of sound (85 decibels).
For children and grandchildren, some toys make sounds loud enough to damage hearing. From toy sirens to toys that play music, these can be as loud as 90 dB – which is as loud as a lawn mower! Noise-induced hearing loss can affect people of any age, even children. When picking out gifts this year, it’s important to consider how loud they can be.
Better Hearing Means Better Communication
Protecting you and your loved one’s hearing will lead to better communication and overall enjoyment in life. When you can hear well, you can converse with your friends, enjoy moments with your family, and can participate with those around you.
Being aware of the noise level around you and from the gifts you give (or receive) is a great first step to being proactive about your hearing health. In addition, you should have your hearing evaluated, especially if you are over the age of 55 or you have a current hearing loss. You want to hear everything the holidays have to offer and don’t want to miss a single moment.
Schedule a Hearing Exam
Before the festivities begin, we encourage everyone to have their hearing evaluated. We provide comprehensive hearing exams for the people of Birmingham, Jasper, and Talladega.
Contact Birmingham Speech & Hearing Associates today to schedule an appointment and hear your best during the holidays!