Noise Induced Hearing Loss and Tinnitus

Noise Induced Hearing Loss and Tinnitus
When you suffer from tinnitus you seem to hear some kind of hissing sound when no external sound is present. There are increasing cases of tinnitus in humans and tinnitus induced by noise seems to be getting reported widely, due to excessive exposure to iPods and other sound systems related to music. There is a lack of awareness about the dangers of hearing loss and tinnitus induced by noise.
Beware of Loud Noise
You can get proof of this easily. Just go to the nearest movie theatre and you can feel the noise decibels enter your entire body. The audio levels seem to be so unnecessarily loud that it is almost noise pollution! Some people wear ear plugs when they go to movies. Most people do not seem to have an issue with the volume. Many concert goers are seen standing close to the speakers! They are unaware that being in close proximity to such devices can lead to hearing loss or tinnitus. Organizers of such events can do a service to customers by warning them against tinnitus and temporary or permanent loss of hearing due to exposure to loud noise.
Treatment for Tinnitus
Tinnitus is incurable. Most insurance companies do not consider tinnitus to be a debilitating condition and hence will not cover your medical expenses or income loss due to chronic suffering. However, tinnitus can become severe for many that they have to get medical attention. It takes a long time for anyone to get relief from tinnitus symptoms. Relief can be an expensive, anywhere from $100/month to $2,500.00. Continuous research is on both in the scientific and medical fields for a cure. Many people may have to suffer from tinnitus before a permanent cure can be found.
Creating Awareness
But, the most important question is why we are not doing more to create awareness about tinnitus induced by noise. We call ourselves a socially responsible society. We label cigarettes, movies, games, age-appropriate toys, trans fat products, and dangerous goods. It may be a good idea to persuade manufacturers to stick warning labels on their audio systems and request the event producers to give specific warnings at their noisy events. These warning notices could read, “Exposure to loud noise can lead to temporary or permanent loss of hearing and tinnitus.”
Conclusion
It is not clear as of now, how long the insurance companies, government officials, manufacturers, and event producers will try to ignore this menacing worldwide epidemic. It is also not clear how long it will take the affected millions to organize and force the corporates to put warning labels on their loud noisy products. The insurance companies have to accept tinnitus as a medical problem.