Excerpt: 'Save Your Hearing Now'

July 18, 2006— -- If you are middle-aged or older, you know the frustration of mistaking or missing out on important details of a conversation.

And if you are in your 20s or 30s, you know too the frustration of speaking to hearing-impaired parents, grandparents and great aunts and uncles in the hope that they will understand even some of what you are saying. In his new book, "How to Save Your Hearing," Dr. Michael D. Seidman reveals why our hearing is more at risk today than it was in centuries past, and gives tips on how to protect it.

Here is an excerpt from the book:

Chapter 1

"I like your watch. What kind is it?"

"About quarter to three."

"The chicken looks good. Do you want white meat or thighs?"

"Oh, no fries for me, thanks."

"The lawyer said he can see you tomorrow. Is three okay?"

"Sure . . . but why is it free?"

Most of us have had little misunderstandings when words weren't heard correctly. But when these incidents become a regular part of the day, hearing loss could be to blame. The best way to determine how well hearing is working is by having an evaluation by a hearing professional -- starting with an otolaryngologist/head and neck surgeon (also known as an ear, nose, and throat doctor, or ENT) and an audiologist. But here are a few signs that may help determine whether it's time to make that appointment:

Today, more people than ever before are dealing with hearing loss. In fact, the numbers are staggering -- more than 30 million baby boomers, another 9 million seniors, and some 2 million young people. Worldwide, the numbers soar to 500 million -- including 70 million Europeans—making hearing loss the number one disability in the world.

The epidemic levels of hearing loss can be explained partially by the fact that we are living longer and aging takes a toll on hearing. But there is a second, more dangerous hearing enemy at work, too -- noise. If you think about the world we live in, this steep increase in hearing loss is not surprising. Each and every day, the average person is assaulted by an extraordinary amount of noise. In many cases, the sources are convenience devices and appliances we depend on -- hair dryers, garbage disposals, sound-producing toys, personal music players, lawn mowers, and vacuum cleaners, to name only a few.

Sound researchers have measured the intensity of many everyday noises and made some surprising conclusions. For example:

15: The average threshold of human hearing (although some people can hear sounds in the 0 to 15 dB range)

20: The sound of a human whisper

50-60: Normal conversation

75: A typical vacuum cleaner

85-90: The point at which hearing damage begins (e.g., a hair dryer or a quiet lawn mower)

100: Power saw

120: Snowmobile engine, jackhammer, chain saw

135: A jet on takeoff, amplified music

140: Gunshot, emergency sirens, threshold of noise-induced pain

Since many tools and toys are commonplace, we tend to take the constant din for granted. In fact, we are so accustomed to noise that silence has become suspicious. Reportedly, back in the 1940s, a silent vacuum cleaner, equipped with an efficient but noiseless induction motor, failed to impress buyers; no one believed that a suction device could work without making noise.