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A Canadian teenager discovered through careful research that many of the hand dryers found in public toilets can be dangerously noisy to children's ears.
The 13-year-old Nora Louise Keegan study was published in Pediatrics & Child Health. Its introduction indicates that previous research has revealed that hand dryers can operate at dangerous levels even for adults, but that there was no research on the potential effects on more sensitive hearing of children . Keegan notes that Canadian regulations prohibit the sale of toys over 100 decibels.
"Sometimes, after using a hand dryer, my ears started to ring and I also noticed that the kids did not want to use hand dryers and that they were covering their ears," Keegan said. on national public radio.
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Keegan used a decibel meter to test 44 hand dryers in public washrooms at places frequented by children, such as schools, libraries, shops and restaurants. She collected data over 14 months, starting at the age of nine.
For thorough sampling, she tested each dryer in 20 different ways. Each test involved a different combination of heights and distances from the wall, with or without hands in the airflow. The heights included the average ear canal height of a 3 year old child and the ear canal of a man and an adult woman. The tests were also conducted in the absence of background noise such as flushing or conversation.
Keegan discovered that the dryers manufactured by Xlerator were the strongest. His results showed that all were above 100 decibels each time the hands were in the air. She also found that several Dyson Airblades were strong, the strongest being 121 decibels. Keegan provided links to each company's manufacturing data in its assessment, indicating that the dryers were more powerful than the companies claimed.
The United States Environmental Protection Agency states that 85 decibels is the level that can be dangerous for hearing.
His research revealed that while some models worked at low noise levels, they were stronger at the height of a child's ears than those of an adult. You can see a chart of all Keegan's results at this link.
Keegan concludes that many hand dryers operate at higher sound levels than those claimed by manufacturers and that these levels are dangerous for children's hearing. She also noted that older hand dryers that seemed to dry their hands more slowly were quieter than the newer, stronger ones but the hands dry faster.
Keegan said that Dyson had contacted her to talk about her research, but NPR said she had been a little busy attending a summer camp.
TEGNA solicited comments from Xcelerator and Dyson.
Getty Images / iStockphoto
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