What are Healthy Hearing Ranges for the Human Ear?

Nearly 2.5 billion people around the world are estimated to have some range of hearing loss by 2050. Hearing loss usually occurs slowly, so it’s difficult to figure out there’s any loss until it becomes a little more severe. High-frequency hearing loss is more common than low-frequency hearing loss. Examples of high frequencies are children’s voices and domestic fire alarms. Examples of low frequencies are deep voices and diesel engines.  

Primary Causes of Hearing Loss

Hearing loss usually gets worse as you age. Here’s why:

• Chronic health conditions. If you have diabetes, problems with blood circulation, and/or heart disease, it can affect the blood flow of all the body’s organs, including the ears. Widespread deterioration can occur, including your hearing health.     
• Cilia damage. The inner ear has tiny hair cells known as cilia. They move when sound waves come in contact with the ear. Noises that are loud can damage the cilia, and once they are damaged it’s permanent. If there’s a lot of damage to the cilia, this is what causes hearing loss. 
• The loss of elasticity. When we age, our bodies do not produce as much elastin. As a result, the soft tissues in the body become less elastic. This includes the tissues in the inner ear. This is what causes the ear to lose some or most of its hearing abilities.
• Side effects from medications. Some medications that are known as ototoxic, can cause hearing loss.  

The Inability to Hear Certain Volumes

A normal, healthy ear can harness sounds that range from a single decibel to sounds in triple decibels. As hearing abilities worsen, the volume that is needed for the ear to pick up sound rises.

If there’s mild hearing loss, a person will not be able to hear sounds under 20 dB (decibels). 

A person with moderate hearing loss cannot hear noises between 41 to 55 dB. 

When a person cannot recognize sounds between 55 to 70 dB, it can negatively impact their quality of life. The average volume of human speech reaches 65 dB. Not being able to hear others speak can cause confusion, and create isolation because one or both parties are unaccommodating. As a result, this can lead to loneliness and depression.  

Those with profound deafness cannot hear any sounds under 90 dB. Having a verbal conversation is nearly impossible. 

Loss of Sound Frequencies 

A young person with healthy hearing abilities can hear from 20 to 20,000Hz. The higher frequencies are harder to hear as people age. On average:

• a person in their 20s can hear up to 17,000Hz
• a person in their 30s can hear up to 16,000Hz
• a person in their 50s can hear up to 12,000Hz  

Most sounds that we hear on a daily basis range between 2,000 and 5,000Hz. The sounds of birds singing can range between 1,000 to 8,000Hz. The majority of human speech frequencies range between 2,000 to 4,000Hz. When a person can no longer hear frequencies below 7,000 to 8,000Hz, their hearing abilities have significantly declined and should be tested. 

The inability to hear frequencies is why some struggle to hear a conversation when there’s any background noise.  

What Are Early Symptoms of Hearing Loss?

It’s tough to notice early symptoms of hearing loss. A person’s ability to hear high frequencies will start to worsen when a person reaches their 30s, but no negative effects will be noticeable. 

Here are early symptoms of hearing loss:

• Struggling to hear a conversation when there’s low background noise. Consonants might be tricky to clearly hear. 
• Every noise sounds muffled.
• You or others notice the volume level on TVs or music devices needs to be turned up.
• Constantly asking others to speak louder, slower, or clearer.
• Feelings of pain in the ears.
• Tinnitus - a phantom beeping, buzzing, chirping, or ringing noise.

If you notice any of these signs in yourself or a loved one,  schedule a complimentary hearing test and consultation with us at Pure Sound Hearing. The appropriate solution will be recommended by our providers.  

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