Have you heard that exposure to loud noises on the job can lead to hearing loss or worse？It can, in fact an estimated twenty-two million US workers are exposed to noise that is loud enough to be hazardous every year.Regardless of your workplace or tools, you should be aware that repeated exposure to loud noises can permanently damage your hearing.

So how you know if you're being exposed to hazardous noise on the job, well do you hear ringing or humming in your ears after leaving work, do you have to shout to a co-worker and arms-length away to be heard, And you experience temporary hearing loss after leaving the workplace, that's what I was afraid of the amount of damage noise can do to your hearing depends on three things:

Decibel level, Distance and Time.

Let's take a closer look at each sound is measured in decibels safe/moderate sound levels are only around 50 to 60 decibels which is the volume of most conversations.

With extended exposure to levels that rise between 85 and 90 decibels, you are going to need some sort of hearing protection, this very- loud volume can be produced by blow dryers blenders or cleaners, and you should put on that hearing protection now. Extremely loud sounds in the 90 to 110 decibel range are made by lawn mowers, hand drills, chainsaws and even digital music players, the most damaging noises are classified as painful and include jet engines, jackhammers and firearms, all of which can be deafening at 120 to 150 decibels.

Distance is another key factor in protecting your hearing, the decibels decreased with distance from the source of any noise, so moving away will lower your chances of injury.

The third key to protecting your hearing is time, because the damaging effects of noise can add up over your lifetime, your risk for permanent damage increases with- regular exposure to-loud sounds with sounds that are 100 decibels limit your exposure to no more than two hours a day, at 115 decibels; you’re limited to 15 minutes of exposure a day. Ask supervisor about your company's hearing loss prevention program at the very least.

If you work around loud noises you should always use appropriate hearing protection, well maybe not always, so a quick recap, lots of people suffer hearing loss on the job, but paying attention to volume levels, distance and exposure time can make a big difference so listen up and protect your ears !