Five Ways to Avoid Hearing Loss in Apartment Living Scenarios

Cramped spaces, a lack of front-facing windows, and the chance to never spend too much on furniture due to lack of room are three things that detractors of apartment-living think of when they imagine downsizing from a house to a one-bedroom (at best). But the truth is that there are plenty of people who eagerly await the opportunity to go to a bustling city, be able to choose a place to live that's right in the heart of the action, and then turn that into one's true home. And while the frenetic pace of urban living has a multitude of benefits, one thing to keep in mind is that the volume level is also considerably higher than it might be living somewhere less populated.

That's why people in cities often complain about noise, then forget about it until it gets really bad. And incessant honking of horns, the shouting of people on the street, and whatever construction sounds might be around at a given point are all factors that can contribute to hearing loss sooner than it should kick in naturally. In fact, hearing problems and city living are so important these days that they have had entire studies devoted to them, so it's always a good idea to pay attention to the ways that one can avoid becoming just another aural statistic.

#1 - Invest in noise-canceling headphones. Whether it's falling asleep to a favorite radio show, trying to avoid the clamor of a practicing band in the same building, or even just trying to not engage with others over the volume level of a television set, there are plenty of reasons to get noise-canceling headphones. They make hearing what one wants a lot easier, but without the cranked-up volume that leads to hearing loss in so many cases.

#2 - Don't try to drown out the sounds of the commute with earbud headphones. These aren't like noise-canceling counterparts; they sit on top of the ear canal without anything surrounding the ear, and the volume level cranks up for the maximum hearing damage with the minimum sound quality.

#3 - Consider choosing an apartment on the highest possible floor of a building. The further one is from the bustle of the street, the less that noise tends to bleed into one's daily life. So when looking for a new place, keep hearing as something that's a component, and try to get as far away from the down-there action as possible.

#4 - Don't try to drown out a neighbor's television set. These kinds of sound squabbles just end with loud noises and everyone unhappy, so it makes far more sense to go ahead and put in some headphones to ignore the onslaught of noise. Plus, there's really no reason to compete with someone whose television set or stereo system is louder, since they are going to win every single time.

#5 - Use earplugs for sleeping. Hearing problems are mostly about exposure to a sound over a prolonged period of time, and if there happens to be construction or something else distracting that's happening while one tries to sleep, then it only makes sense to go with the kind of protection designed to simply block noises, not just allow the good sounds to filter through. So get a pair of those opaque orange earplugs from the local pharmacy, and enjoy a lack of distraction during sleeping hours, plus the bonus of not worrying about hearing loss from ambient noise.

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