European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - June 30, 1987, Darmstadt, Hesse To your health an ear for summer hazards by Janee. Brody new York times summertime can be hard on inc ears. Warm weather activities and travel place the non auditory parts the Middle ear and external car canal especially Al risk. For Ixam Plo swimmer s ear otitis extern Alan intention of the external car cant can occur even among no swimmers when the weather n hot and humid. Aero Titis Media an injury to the Middle ear is caused by a rapid increase in air pressure which occurs Tor example when a plane descends if you Are aware of inc hazards and take a Tew simple precautions you can usually avoid i he pain these conditions can cause swimmer s ear nearly everyone who swims has had water in Ihei ears which usually comes right out when you tilt your head and of or vigorously shake your head to one Side. But water Attiat slays in the external ear canal the Tunnel just beyond the visible part of the ear can result in a potentially dangerous car infection ii untreated Kolilis external can spread inward loading to Middle car infection interference with balance and hearing and even brain infection Turco fac lots interact to cause inc problem warmth the temperature in the car is idea moisture and the presence of infectious organisms Ike bacteria or fungi. The longer the ear canal is expos of earsplitting noises harm More than ears by Donald j. Frederick National geographic silence May be Golden bul mounting Levels of noise pollution Are making in harder und harder to find this Golden treasure. Somr statistics show that environmental noise in Urban areas of the United states has been doubling every 10 years nor Are things much hello in the country where lha Decibel level of Many Faun machines has been rising higher lev Corn. About h million americans Are exposed to hazardous sound Levels on the Job. According to a report prepared for the Federal Protection Agency millions Mure encounter damaging noises while walking cd streets fighting Rush hours of enduring noises torn Low flying Ai Crali the consequences drive been costly. State and Federal employees collected an estimated $25 billion in hearing impairment claims in the past 10 years. Statistics for the private sector Are not available. In westernized countries men lose heir hearing More than women do. But the reason May not to biological. It could result from i posture to More noise in the workplace. Atone v me people speculated thai toss of hearing was just part of the aging says or. Roger Hamernik director of the auditory research Laboratory at the t to University of new York College at plates Birgh. But now we re finding that Many factory workers and others who have Laboured in noisy environments for a number of years end up with severe hearing a Hamernik s opinion the car developed As an Organ necessary for survival since survival sometimes depended or. In the ability to select such noises As the Stealthy approach of a predator. Bul observes Hamernik while inc oar has evolved into an exquisitely sensitive instrument it was not designed for the types of contemporary noise environments to which it is being exposed noise also has been linked to brain disorders. Our studies indicate that intense noise exposure for lengthy periods of time can Aller cells in the Bram Stem causing distortions in the Way people hear things says or Richard j Salvi of the Callier Center for communication disorders at inc University of Texas. Barely audible sounds of Connors Lions suddenly become uncomfortably loud for people afflicted with the disorder newborns seem particularly jolting through a clout of dual Ajeck Hammer a shattering staccato Bangs at the ears and nerves of passers by. Susceptible to inner ear damage irom loud noises and May Sufler loss of brain Colls As a result according to research by or Edwin w. Rubet professor of otolaryngology Al the University of Washington school of Medicine. We Haven t figured out Why newborns arc so vulnerable but to think Tho noise risk is heightened Lor Al least the first few months of a baby s life says Rubel. He advises parents to avoid exposing their newborns to continuous loud Low frequency sounds such As those emitted by unshielded Jet engines or Chain saws. Certainly anything ent emely annoying or painful to an adult would t be advisable Lor a Newborn child Rube says. Researchers in Sweden have Raulio Ned that noisy toys also May Hasm hearing. A University of Goldborg study found that squeaky rubber squeeze Loys held close to the ear emitted noises in the 108-Decibel level equivalent to she sound made by a Chain saw. Some toy guns and firecrackers were much worse. For most Normal children hearing is most acute a Aboul age 10. I a it takes about 30 to 40 years be lore any noticeable change occurs. Higher Pilch cd sounds fade lust but Many people in their 70s and beyond remain Tho ability to hear conversation at a Normal Pilch scientists Are finding thai Youthful listening habits have some bearing on How Well people will Hoar when they get old. Or. David Lipscomb director of noise research at the University of Tennessee found that Many Young Rock music favors preferred a noise level just Short of pain that injures the ears of Guinea pigs. In a lest of College freshmen he discovered that six out of 10 suffered hearing losses and concluded that loud music was a Factor. The stereo earphone fad seems just As bad. Tho noise Levels going into some ears Are outrageous says or. John Mills. A noise and hearing expert Ai the medical University of South Carolina. Most of these Young people won t a hearing lass Buas they get older their earphone Days May come Back to haunt noise has been implicated in other disorders besides hearing toss. It has been linked As a contributor to coronary diseases hypertension physiological disorders and pm Lional stress As or Hamernik puts in noise does l cause and Ely. But it does amplify it a French report blames noise Lor 70 percent of the neurons of a Jot Lod i the pans area. Page 16 the stars and stripes tuesday june 30.1987
