Noise pollution causes deafness

12 March 2010

Noise pollution causes deafness. World became more and more civilized during past centuries and noise pollution became a serious problem in our days. It is a huge issue, because it affects everyone, especially people who live in big and crowded cities. It is not only airports, cars and factories that produce waste and noise, but also such things as computers and printers.

Even pleasurable things, such as listening to loud music, can damage our hearing. It is proven that noise has different negative influences on people. It not only damages our hearing but also affects our behaviour.

According Encyclopaedia, noise is “sound that interferes with other sound that are being listened to”. Big cities are the main sources of noise pollution. People invented engines, amplifiers, speakers and other things to make our life easier and more pleasurable. Noise from “road traffic, jet planes, jet skis, garbage trucks, construction equipments, manufacturing processes, lawn mowers, leaf blowers, and boom boxes, to name a few, are among unwanted sounds that are routinely broadcasted into the air”(Clearinghouse, web).

However, these inventions not only help us but also cause damage to our ears and behaviour. It is obvious that noise pollution has reached an enormous level now and there is no way we can stop it. It is impossible to stop factories, planes or cars. According T.J. Winpenny in his book Values of the Environment, we have to choose between health and well being on the one hand, and the commercial and public services on the other. Generally, it is very important to know how noise affects us and how can we protect ourselves from the harm it is doing. No matter what kind of noise it is, it still affects us in a some way. It is scientifically proved that the noise level of 85 decibels can damage hearing if the noise continues for eight hours or more (Noise watch, web.) Loud noise wrecks hearing by damaging the delicate mechanisms of the inner ear that convert sound information into nerve signals. The most common thing for people who are often exposed to loud noise is tinnitus or ringing in the ears. Reports of tinnitus experienced by young people exposed to loud music have increased three times since the early 1980s. The report found that “6.8% of people not regularly exposed to loud music of 85 decibels or over suffer from tinnitus compared to 20% of people who are”.

Research from Australia suggest that children aged between 10 and 15 who listen to loud personal stereos for more than six hours a week may be damaging their auditory senses so badly they could suffer hearing problems 30 years earlier than they are actually supposed to. They also say stereo noise is equivalent to listening to a pneumatic drill for eight hours a day (Noise watch, web).

The modern lifestyle of urban center and big cities is a major threat to the population young and old. Clubs, cinemas and restaurants noise level reaches 100 or more decibels. Long exposure to such noises may seriously damage the ear. A recent survey showed that eight out of ten young club goers were unconcerned about potential damage to their hearing. This is despite the fact that 62% of regular clubbers and 72% of regular concertgoers report problems with their hearing. Concerts and nightclubs produce sounds that can register up to 120 decibels, louder than a pneumatic drill. In the workplaces, employees are required to wear hearing protection when levels exceed 85 decibels. Mostly people who experience high amount of noise (for example, those who live near train stations) suffer elevated rates of stress-related disorders; high blood pressure, anxiety, and feeling of helplessness. (Myers,166).

Depression, anxiety, loss of hearing, and other effects on behaviour are only few influences that noises do on people. Children brought up in noisy areas have poorer reading skills than those bought up in quieter areas. Obviously, these different vibrations, carried to our nerve and brain cell, have mostly negative impacts on us. It is impossible to stop the noise pollution completely, but to reduce the amount of pollution is possible. For that reason some cities have quiet hours or special walls that protect people from the blaring noise from factories and michines.

By Kesang Rinchen

Ratings: 1 Star