Hearing or auditory perception is a vital part of our everyday life. The auditory system works in a complex manner to function properly. For us to appreciate this process, we need to know how our body interprets signals to produce a sound.
As the sound waves are collected by the outer ear, these signals will be sent out to the ear canal and eardrum. The eardrum then vibrates and three tiny bones in the middle portion are set into motion. The fluid into the inner ear housed by the cochlea will also move cased by the motion of the three tiny bones. These movements cause hair cells to bend in the cochlea and change into electrical impulses. The impulses are then transmitted into the brain where they are interpreted as sound. This is a continuous chain process and anything that breaks the chain, whether it be anatomical damage or loss of function will impede the production of a good quality sound.
Most of us do not have a clear understanding of the irritation and damage noise causes to our auditory system. Healthy hearing habits are one of the items campaign experts are interested in today. The science of noise-induced hearing loss had been seen to be frequently common in children and pre-teens and the numbers are starting to increase which is quite alarming.
Noise-induced hearing loss or NIHL happens when the sensitive structures of our ear get damaged. This condition can be temporary or permanent. At times, we are not able to notice that it's happening, at other times effects are immediate and severe. Good news is, it can be prevented.
What can we do to help avoid hearing loss?
When we want to take care of our body, we engage into activities like exercise, selecting healthy foods to eat or we hydrate ourselves. Same goes for taking care of our auditory system. There's a common 60/60 rule where we are advised to only use 60% of the volume of our gadgets when we use our headphones and only use it for 60 minutes a day. Sounds at safe levels will not damage our ear.
Other means of protection and prevention would include, letting your ear heal after listening to prolonged loud noises, keeping both ears always dry to avoid bacterial proliferation especially after swimming, having enough exercise is also good for hearing and regular check-ups.
Recreational activities greatly contribute to noise-induced hearing loss. Examples of these activities are, attending loud concerts, snowmobile riding, target shooting or simply listening to the MP3 player on high volume while at the gym or going out on a run. Luckily, Puro Sound Labs has developed innovative hearing safe headphones or earphones to combat dangerous levels of sound. Puro Sound Labs founder, Dave Russell, has a daughter, Niki, who has experienced hearing loss. This led to the birth of Puro Sound Labs. This is the company's humble beginning leading to the production of quality products. Its mission is to fight the growing numbers of cases of Noise Induced Hearing Loss by providing healthy and affordable products that protects the health of the consumers.
PuroSounds is a family business that strives to reach out to as many people to battle NIHL. They have partnered with the KultureCity Sensory inclusive program to bring awareness, acceptance and inclusion to help individuals with autism and other sensory needs.
What hearing health friendly gadgets has Puro Sound Labs developed to battle NIHL?
BT2200 Volume Limited Kids' Bluetooth Headphones
This type of headphones is specially designed for kids. This would prevent our kids from damaging their ears at a very young age. If parents are concerned about their child's hearing health, this is practically designed for that purpose. Our kids use multimedia now to learn and study, and this will totally help them. Its design is wireless making it very comfortable to use. It has a volume restrictor limit output that when our children use it, they will not exceed above 85 decibels which is the maximum recommended level. It is engineered using quality materials that would prevent the possibility of developing allergies. It is ultra-lightweight and ear cups are designed for comfort. It blocks 82% of background noise and delivers clear, crisp vocals and a full dynamic bass.
PuroQuiet On-Ear Active Noise Cancelling Headphones
This is another great product we can get that will help us in taking good care of our hearing health. This headphone has an Active Noise Cancellation (ANC) feature that gives 22dB noise reduction with 82% noise isolation. This makes it safe to be used by our children for a worry-free listening experience. It is also wireless to get rid of the entanglement of cables and also works with a Bluetooth v4.0. It also has a microphone for ANC and communication and is fully compatible with Android, iPhone devices and your PC. According to hearing Health Foundation, this gadget can be used with 85dB for as long as 8 hours. Suggested users would be from ages 2 to 92 years of age.
Dr. Sean Oliver, an audio professional, developed the product to optimize the sound quality at low volume levels. This sound curve has been improved meaning you don't need to turn the volume up to hear the subtle aspects of the audio. The materials used in building this are of high quality. The earcups are made up of aluminum alloy as well as the headbands making it strong, light and comfortable. Vegan leather is also used to cover the earcups. The battery has a long life and comes with a volume limited cable to aid if it dies on a plane without the Bluetooth. It is also a great addition to your new gaming product.
JuniorJams: Volume Limited Kids Headphones
Like the other products, this is safe to use for its 85 decibel volume limit. A single charge will provide 22 hours of wireless playtime. The audio produced is crystal clear even at low volume levels. It is designed for kids and teens for them to appreciate full rich sound with a 40mm dynamic driver and ambient noise reduction up to 87%. Parents would be given a peace of mind all the features of this device.
PuroGamer Volume Limited Gaming Headphone
With its lightweight design, and studio grade audio quality, our kids would definitely find comfortable experience with this headphone. It has a 50mm graphene speaker makes for a stable and crisper audio quality. The ear cups are wrapped in a super-soft protein leather and a headband with sliding adjustment to perfectly fit all users. It has an omnidirectional microphone that picks up sound from all directions filtering ambient noise. The competitive edge of this product is that it can provide an immersive gaming experience. Its ambient noise isolation is 75%.
Having all these affordable products in the market, parents can enjoy a worry-free audio time for their kids. Thanks to continuous research that led to innovative strategies on how to protect the public from Noise-Induced Hearing Loss, we can take one step closer to eliminating NIHL.
