Why specifically do we lose HIGH frequency hearing as we age, and not low frequency?
In: Biology
Sound is fundamentally detected by “hair cells” in your inner ear, which have hairs suspended in fluid that move when the fluid is affected by an incoming sound. However, these cells die off as you age, so as you get fewer of them the sensitivity of your hearing goes down, with high frequencies being the first you notice.
[removed]
I am 26. Difficult birth led to high frequency hearing loss. I have had hearing aids for all my life. Protect it. Please experience sounds I will never hear for me.
Most of these aren’t quite the full idea…
The ear is structured in such a way for the inner ear (behind the eardrum) to pick up sounds in order of *decreasing* frequency. Basically, the high-frequency sounds get detected first. Because high-frequency sounds have shorter wavelengths (and low-frequency waves have longer wavelengths) the high-frequency sound waves basically get stopped as soon as they are detected. Lower frequency sounds, however, can pass through more of the inner ear without getting interference, so they can be detected deeper in the ear.
So high-frequency sounds don’t “hit” the parts of the ear that low-frequency sounds reach, but *all* sound passes through the parts where high-frequencies hit. This means that sounds that we perceive as low frequency still cause the normal “wear and tear” on the whole ear, while high frequency noise doesn’t (typically, and assuming relatively the same loudness).
If it helps to think about why high-frequency waves are more susceptible to interference than low-frequency waves, watch a post going into the water, like on a dock. Long waves (low frequency) seem to pass right through the poles of the dock, but shorter ripples get stopped by the poles. You can test that in a bathtub or a large bowl of water too, if you like.
I’m 55.
I as part of the first generation of Walkmans attended lots of love music events and worked in a machine shop for 10 yrs.
Most of that time with little or no ear protection.
I got really cool looking desert tan camo hearing aids I wear all the time now.
Not being able to clearly hear someone talk isn’t the worst if it. It’s not being able to hear the rain fall, or birds chirp.
Protect that shit.
The way the inner ear is laid out, the higher frequency hair cells are at the end of the circulation of the labyrinthine artery that serves the cochlea and inner ear.
Microvascular changes affect these first, hence the changes in hearing as we age = presbycusis
I remember my engineering professor telling us that by the time you could afford audiophile level equipment, you wouldn’t be able to hear the high frequencies anyway. He was right!
I’m 25 and my partner is 40, he can’t hear the high frequency beep when he leaves the fridge open, yet I can hear it from upstairs. He thinks I’ve got a crazy super power but I’ll just explain to him it’s because he’s old
Latest Answers