Page 18 - Occupational Health & Safety, September 2017

HEARING PROTECTION
The Millennial Generation: Wired for Sound and At Risk for Hearing Loss
Sound-level meter apps available for smart phones “can have a tremendous and far-reaching impact in the area of noise control,” says the CDC.
BY MARY PADRON
Do you have a favorite sound? Is it the sweet laughter of someone you love? Or do you appreciate the sounds of a rushing river or waves lapping upon the beach of your fa-
vorite seaside town? Or, like many Millennials, maybe your favorite sounds are your favorite songs played from your iPod while wearing ear buds.
No matter what your favorite sounds are, how do you protect your hearing so that you are not a victim of noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL), especially if you are a Millennial whose hearing may already be compromised from over exposure to personal elec- tronic devices?
Unfortunately, hearing loss negatively impacts a person’s job, relationships, and lifestyle. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says that hearing loss “is the third most common chronic physical con- dition in the United States. It is twice as common as diabetes or cancer.”
The National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders estimates that “approxi- mately 15 percent of Americans (26 million people) between the ages of 20 and 69 have high frequency hearing loss due to over exposure to noise at work or during leisure activities.”
Over exposure to noise can be detrimental to hearing health and can lead to:
■ tinnitus (ringing in the ears)
■ temporary, mild, or permanent hearing loss
■ loss of productivity
■ increased probability of work-related accidents
and injury
At Risk for Hearing Loss
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Mil- lennials represent 36 percent of the U.S. workforce and will represent 75 percent by the year 2025. Born between 1980 and 2000, they already have experi- enced a steady stream of loud noise in their personal lives through ear buds and personal electronic de- vices. Plus, younger workers entering the workforce often underestimate the risks of noise hazards.
Additionally, the World Health Organization es- timates globally that 1.1 billion teenagers and young adults, which includes Millennials, are already at risk for hearing loss from unsafe use of electronic devices or from exposure to dangerous sound levels at night- clubs, concert halls, or sporting events.
In February 2017, CDC released a survey that said around 8 million people ages 20 to 29 suffer from some kind of hearing loss. This amounts to 7 percent of this
18 Occupational Health & Safety | SEPTEMBER 2017
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age group who can’t hear high-pitched sounds. This figure goes up to 10 percent for people ages 30 to 39.
The cumulative effect of over exposure to sound in Millennials’ personal and workplace lives could cause the “generation wired for sound” and the younger gen- erations that follow to suffer from hearing loss more fre- quently than the generations before them. Safety man- agers and professionals need to address the increased risk of hearing loss for Millennials in their hearing con- servation programs, especially because they represent more than one-third of today’s workforce.
How to Motivate Millennials to Protect their Hearing through Technology
Luckily, despite these statistics, WHO says NIHL “is the most common, permanent, and preventable oc- cupational injury in the world.” Because Millennials are now the largest generation in the U.S. labor force, how can we motivate them to protect their hearing at work and in their personal lives?
Most safety managers are familiar with the pri- mary methods to help prevent hearing loss, includ- ing education, engineering and administration con- trols, “buy quiet” practices, and the use of hearing protection devices (HPDs), such as foam ear plugs and ear muffs.
RADIANS