User:Sallie.croissant/sandbox

Ear Protection Article: I think there should be some information about how not wearing hearing protection can damage hearing permanently. Also I think there could be some information about how much noise reduction each of the listed hearing protection gives to show the reduction from the 85 dBA limit (noise reduction rating). A hyperlink to the amount of noise and the maximum amount of time a person should be exposed to the sound before becoming damaging to their hearing. There is really only one citation in the article; however, the article is short and believe it could have all came from one source. There are many hyperlinks that lead to more information on other topics within the article.

https://www.osha.gov/SLTC/noisehearingconservation/

https://blogs.cdc.gov/niosh-science-blog/2016/02/08/noise/ This source includes the Average Sound Exposure Levels Needed to Reach the Maximum Allowable Daily Dose which is important when considering when to use hearing protection. It can also help with considering what kind of hearing protection to use by looking at the noise reduction rating of hearing protection.

NIOSH Criteria for a Recommended Standard; Chapter 6: Hearing Protectors

Chasin, M. & Behar, A. (2003). Hearing protection. Seminars in Hearing. 24(4): 345-354.

Draft:

When sounds exceed 80 dB, it becomes dangerous to the ears. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) has standards that show how long a person can be in different loudness levels before the person reaches their maximum daily dose and becomes damaging to their hearing. These standards can give individuals an idea of when hearing protection should be considered. The maximum daily dose with the corresponding decibel level is shown below. .

Decibel Level                 Time reaching maximum daily dose 8 hours                       85 dB(A) 4 hours                       88 dB(A) 2 hours                       91 dB(A) 60 minutes                    94 dB(A) 30 minutes                    97 dB(A) 15 minutes                    100 dB(A)

Each type of ear protection has what is called a noise reduction rating (NRR). This gives the consumer an estimate of how much noise is being reduced before reaching the individual's ear. It is important for the consumer to know that this is only a single number estimate derived from a laboratory experiment, and the NRR will vary per individual wearing the hearing protection. NIOSH and OSHA have derating values to help give the person an idea of how much sound is being attenuated while wearing the hearing protection. OSHA uses a half derating, while NIOSH uses 70% for pre-formed earplugs, 50% for formable earplugs, and 25% for earmuffs.

Earplugs: These are ear protection that fit inside of the person's ear canal. There are many different types of earplugs. The most common earplugs are foam, musician, or custom plugs that are made from a mold of an individual's ear.

Earmuffs: This ear protection fits snug around the individual's external ear.

Helmet:

In some occasions, multiple types of ear protection can be used together to increase the NRR. For example, foam earplugs can be worn in conjunction with earmuffs.