Noise
More than 28 million Americans have hearing loss and roughly 80% of those affected have irreversible and permanent hearing damage. (Environmental Health Perspectives, 1994)
Estimated 15 of every 1,000 persons under age 18 have some type of hearing impairment. (Environmental Health Perspectives, 1994)
According to OSHA at least one million US workers in manufacturing have job related hearing impairment. (Environmental Health Perspectives, 1994)
Healthy People 2010 risk reduction objective: Reduce by half the number of workers exposed to noise level that exceed 85 dBA. (Smith, 2000)
Noise can cause hearing impairment, “stress related conditions, mental illness, social maladjustment, and pathological conditions such as atherosclerosis and heart disease”. (Smith, p. 720)
Sources of Noise Pollution:
- Job related noise (Construction workers, airport employees, train engineers, etc.)
- Music (concerts, bars, parties, headphones)
- Homes near airports