How to Avoid Hearing Loss at a Concert

The human sense of hearing is a truly amazing phenomenon. It is all too easy for one to lose it. Exposure to loud noises, especially of a prolonged nature, can be extremely damaging to a person's hearing. Live music events and concerts are notorious for causing permanent hearing loss to those who attend. There are, though, numerous ways to combat the development of hearing loss at a concert. Here's how:

Things You'll Need

• Molding Ear Plugs
• Common Sense

Instructions

Avoiding Hearing Loss at a Concert

1. Bring protection. Make sure that you bring ear plugs with you to the concert and that you use them properly. The best ear plugs are those that can be molded to fit your unique ear shape exactly.

2. Distance yourself. If at all possible, try to put some distance between yourself and the giant banks of speakers that exist at most concerts. The closer you are to the speakers, the louder the noise you're exposed to, the better your chances are of significant hearing loss.

3. Take a break. If the noise from the concert seems especially loud, take a walk away from the stage and visit the restroom or go get a beverage. Taking a short break from the concert's loud noise will give your ears a chance to recuperate and will help to mitigate the damage that's done to your hearing.

4. Don't speak. Although it's tempting to converse with other concert goers doing so is extremely difficult and can cause hearing loss. Removing your ear plugs will subject you to the loudest noise possible and you'll have to scream louder than the music to be heard by anyone. This extremely loud noise can cause serious hearing loss, especially when it takes place right next to your vulnerable ear drum.

Tips & Warnings

• If you forget to bring ear plugs with you to the concert, try making your own out of wadded up paper towel or napkins. Although they won't be as good as commercial products and may not prevent hearing loss, they'll still help.

• Never push ear plugs too deeply into the ear canal. Doing so may cause serious damage to the inner ear.

• The only sure-fire way to avoid hearing loss at a concert is to not attend it. Even with proper care it's still possible that you may sustain some minor hearing loss if the concert you attend reaches too high a decibel level.