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Are you a parent of an infant and had to take the precious little one to a wedding where the music was louder at the reception than expected, and wondering whether it’s going to affect your baby’s well-being?
Or, have you received an invitation to a wedding and are apprehensive about taking your baby with you and exposing him to the loud music?
If your answer is yes to either of those questions, this post might clear things up for you.
It is very natural for you to be worried about exposing your baby to loud sounds, as infants are such delicate beings incapable of withstanding some intense sensory inputs like adults.
In this post, I’ll talk about how loud music can affect a baby and if there are any implications of a baby being exposed to loud music at an event such as a wedding reception.
Effects Of Loud Music On An Infant
Before we go into the particular scenario of a baby exposed to loud music at wedding, let’s talk about how loud music in general, or any loud noise for that matter, can affect an infant.
Noise-Induced Hearing Loss
Noise-induced hearing loss is the term used for the impairment of hearing caused by loud noises.
There are two ways it can happen. One is continuous exposure to noises over 85 dB in intensity, like amplified music at parties, over some time, causing damage to the hair cells in the inner ear.
Or one-time exposure to noise over 140 dB, like an explosion, rupturing the eardrum and damaging tiny bones called ossicles in the middle ear.
These thresholds of noise intensities can be even less for infants due to the smaller volumes of their tiny ear canals.
Stress And Anxiety
Loud music and noise, in addition to causing hearing impairment, can hurt an infant’s mental and emotional well-being.
This can include stress and anxiety, which can be particularly problematic, for infants are unable to understand or cope with these emotions.
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Impact On Emotional And Social Development
It’s also important to think about how loud music affects an infant’s social and emotional development.
Infants communicate and bond through sound and touch, and loud music can interfere with their ability to form strong emotional connections with their caregivers.
Furthermore, the constant noise and stimulation provided by loud music can cause sensory overload, causing infants to withdraw or lose interest in their surroundings.
Would One Time Exposure To Loud Music At A Party Be Harmful?
To answer this properly, a multitude of factors has to be taken into consideration including the:
- Exact intensity of the music
- Duration of exposure
- Frequency of exposure
- Distance from the speakers
All of these are detrimental to finding out what the impact has been or will be.
If you have already taken your baby to the wedding, you probably shouldn’t worry, as your baby may not likely have been exposed long enough, or the music is not loud enough to have caused any permanent harm.
Parents generally have instincts to protect their babies, and you probably kept your baby far enough away from the speakers.
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If you want to be sure that your baby is fine, you can discuss your concerns with a pediatrician. Your baby would probably be referred to an otolaryngologist and an audiologist too for ear examinations and a hearing assessment.
If you are contemplating taking your infant to a wedding you are invited to, try not to.
A baby hardly has anything to gain from such an experience, and you probably are not physically and psychologically ready to deal with a distressed infant at a wedding reception.
If you somehow must go to the function with your baby, take measures to minimize the impact of loud music, such as using sound cancelling headphones on the little one to block the noise out and keeping the baby as far away as you can from the blasting speakers.
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Bottom Line
Being exposed to loud sounds can impair an infant’s hearing, make them stressed and anxious, and hinder their social and emotional development due to sensory overload.
If its a very important occasion and its difficult to avoid keep you baby away from speakers, take breaks in a quieter side room, and consider buying some sound cancelling headphones or ear defenders.
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Even though a one-time exposure to loud sounds like the music at a wedding reception might not cause any long-lasting harm to a baby, it is best avoided as there is some possibility of it happening, depending on the particular loudness of the music, duration of exposure, distance from the speakers to the baby, etc..
If you are concerned about your baby’s well-being after taking them to a wedding where the music was loud, a pediatrician can clear things up for you with the help of an otolaryngologist and an audiologist.