Love of the open road and the thrill of speed top the list of reasons why people love to ride motorcycles. But this exhilarating hobby comes at a high risk of irreversible hearing damage for individuals who ride a lot.
The impact of motorcycle speed and riding duration on hearing health was assessed in a comprehensive study conducted by a hearing protection maker in collaboration with a notable German automobile association. The results were alarming: bikers can suffer irreversible hearing damage after only 15 minutes of riding without earplugs at a speed of 62 mph.
What causes hearing loss in motorcyclists?
You may not be surprised that bikers frequently suffer from hearing loss, but you may be surprised as to why. Despite what many think, it’s not the motorcycle’s roaring engine but rather, the wind that presents the biggest hazard. While helmets offer considerable protection from injury during crashes, the research stresses that they fall short in protecting the rider’s hearing. The wind noise whipping around the rider’s head isn’t reduced much even when a helmet has added padding, vents, or other modifications.
Regular exposure to extreme noise levels often leaves bikers with a condition called temporary threshold shift (TTS). TTS is a progressive condition, which means the more you’re exposed to loud noises, the worse the symptoms can become. Individuals who are coping with TTS might start to notice that their hearing is less clear or other minor symptoms. But permanent hearing loss can, over time, be the result.
Comparing wind noise with other noise levels
The German study sheds a lot of light on just how severe wind noise can get while riding. The wind noise around a rider’s head can be as high as 95 (dB) at 62 mph. For context, European Union (EU) law mandates that workers must protect their ears if exposed to noise levels higher than 80 dB. Bikers are experiencing noise levels up to 19% higher than safe working environments when traveling at this speed.
And the volume level only gets louder as the speed goes up. At 74 mph, wind noise can reach 98 dB, a level that can cause hearing damage after just 7 minutes of exposure. Many studies confirm that bikers are indeed at considerable risk of permanent hearing loss.
How to safeguard your hearing
Fortunately, protecting your hearing while riding is both easy and effective: use earplugs. Hearing specialists emphatically recommend utilizing filtered earplugs, which are far superior to the old, uncomfortable versions many are familiar with. Filtered earplugs are a more advanced model that filters out high frequencies like wind while allowing lower frequencies to get in. It’s important for bikers to still be able to hear vital sounds like human voices, emergency warning sounds, and car horns.
Moreover, these modern earplugs let bikers enjoy the sensations of riding without feeling isolated or numb, a common disadvantage of older protective devices. With filtered earplugs, you can continue to enjoy the thrill of the ride while protecting your hearing from the harmful effects of wind noise.
While the passion for motorcycling is motivated by the appeal of speed and freedom, it’s essential to acknowledge and minimize the associated hazards to your hearing. Considerable and permanent hearing damage can be caused by the noise of wind at high speeds. But bikers can safeguard their long-term hearing while still enjoying the ride by simply making use of a set of quality earplugs.
Give us a call today to learn more about hearing protection so you can stay on top of your hearing health.
