When you were a kid you most likely had no idea that cranking the volume up on your music could result in health issues. You just enjoyed the music.
As you got older, you probably indulged in nights out at loud movies and concerts. It may even be common for you to have experienced loud noise at work. Still, you didn’t think it had any lasting impact.
You probably know differently now. Children as young as 12 can have permanent noise-induced hearing loss. But sound is so powerful it can actually be used as a weapon.
Can You Get Ill From Sound?
Actually, it Can. Certain sounds can evidently cause you to get sick according to doctors and scientists. This is why.
How Health is Impacted by Loud Noise
Very loud sounds injure the inner ear. You have tiny hairs that detect +
vibrations after they pass through the membrane of the eardrum. Once these tiny hairs are destroyed, they don’t ever heal or grow back. This is what causes the sensorineural hearing loss that many people deal with as they age.
Over 85 dB of volume for an 8 hour period of time will start to cause long-term damage. It only takes 15 minutes for long-term impairment to occur at 100 dB. At 120 dB, the volume of a rock concert, instant, irreversible impairment will take place.
Noises can also impact cardiovascular wellness. Subjection to loud sounds can increase stress hormones, which can lead to clogged arteries, obesity, high blood pressure, and more. This could explain the headaches and memory problems that people subjected to loud noise complain about. Cardiovascular health is directly connected to these symptoms.
Sound as low as 45 decibels can, based on one study, begin to have an impact on your hormones and your heart. A person speaking with a quiet indoor voice is at this volume level.
Your Health is Affected by Certain Sound Frequencies – This is How
Cuban diplomats got sick after being subjected to certain sounds a few years ago. The sound in Cuba wasn’t that loud. They were able to drown it out with a tv. So how could this kind of sound make people sick?
The answer is frequency.
High Frequency
Even at lower volumes, appreciable harm can be done by some high-frequency sound.
Does the sound of nails on a chalkboard make you cringe? Have you been driven crazy by somebody continuously dragging their finger across a folded piece of paper? Have you ever needed to plug your ears during a violin recital?
If you’ve felt the force of high-pitched sounds, the pain you felt was in fact damage happening to your hearing. If you endured this for an extended period of time, regularly exposed yourself to it, or were exposed at a high volume, then the damage might have become irreversible.
Research has also discovered that damage can be done even if you can’t hear the sound. High-frequency sounds emanating from sensors, trains, machinery, and other man-made devices might be emitting frequencies that do damage with too much exposure.
Low Frequency
Your health can also be affected by infrasound which is very low frequency sound. The vibrations can make you feel disoriented and physically sick. Some even experience flashes of color and light that are typical in migraine sufferers.
How You Can Safeguard Your Hearing
Recognize how particular sounds make you feel. Limit your exposure if certain sounds make you feel pain or other symptoms. Pain is frequently a warning sign of damage.
Get your hearing tested regularly by a hearing specialist to understand how your hearing could be changing over time.