If you're going to the bolts watch party at Amalie Arena tonight, you might consider grabbing some cotton balls to stuff in your pocket or some headphones.
Hearing loss is a growing public health crisis. One in seven Americans will suffer some form of hearing loss in their lifetime.
While there is a higher incidence of hearing loss for people 65 and older, damage to your hearing starts when you're young.
"I went to the outdoor watch party for your great Tampa Bay Bolts, and I have to go Bolts! We were so excited to be part of that excitement. But it was so loud there. And when the team took their break, the music was so loud that I had to plug my ears it was well over the danger level of 80 decibels," Barbara Kelley, Executive Director of the Hearing Loss Association of America said.
She continued, "If somebody left there or a really noisy concert, and they had this stuffed feeling in their ears, or their hearing was muffled or ringing, that is a sign of permanent hearing damage. Because the hair cells have been assaulted in the inner ear and they've been damaged, and you can't restore them."
Kelley said doctors are seeing a high number of baby boomers who spent lots of years at rock concerts coming in complaining about hearing loss recently.
The biggest way to preserve your hearing is to get it checked annually, most people don't do that.
You can check yours for free Friday and Saturday. The HLAA is holding its conference at the JW Marriott and the public is invited to come and learn about how hearing loss and see the latest technology available to help with it.
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