NATIONAL charity Action on Hearing Loss is urging parents to protect their children’s hearing over the bonfire night festivities, which will be taking place across East Hampshire over the next few days.

Children will be coming out in full force to watch the firework displays but many parents do not realise that exposing a child to booming firecrackers and whistling Catherine wheels could be putting their hearing at risk of permanent damage.

Any sound over 85db is viewed as harmful to your hearing and a firework display averages around 120dB, which is the equivalent of a jet taking off.

But there is no reason to stop them from enjoying the spectacle, so Action on Hearing Loss has offered some top tips to protect children from the cacophony of fireworks.

The charity recommends that when attending the celebrations, children should wear noise-reducing ear defenders, keep at least 50 yards away from all sources of loud noise, and limit the duration of exposure to loud noises, as the louder the noise the less time it takes to damage hearing permanently.

Vaitheki Maheswaran, an audiologist at Action on Hearing Loss, said: “Take steps to protect your hearing at loud events by wearing ear plugs.

“We also encourage protecting your children’s hearing as it’s difficult to say when a small child’s hearing is at risk. Their tiny ears can be more sensitive than adult ears to certain high-pitched sounds. The best way to protect your child’s hearing is by using ear defenders that are specially designed for children.”