To others, they sound like melodies. For some, they lead to anxiety and despair
To others, they sound like melodies. For some, they lead to anxiety and despair. Cicadas can therefore be particularly annoying to people on the autism spectrum who are sensitive to sounds.
Trillions of bugs from two different species appeared in the US this year: one that appears every 13 years and the other every 17 years.
Their singing (the sound they make, officially called a “teterism”) can be particularly stressful for some people, such as people with autism. So much so that it can cause physical discomfort.
The truth is, when a large group of mosquitoes start singing, the chorus can be as loud as a motorcycle to some people’s ears. Researchers at the University of Missouri-St. Louis collected mosquito noise levels of up to 86 decibels this year, which is about as loud as a blender.
So it makes sense that some people don’t like this kind of ringtone at all.
Tinnitus problems
Fatima Hussain is a professor and neuroscientist at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign who studies how the brain processes sound. People with tinnitus can also struggle with mosquitoes and their sounds, he says.
“Some say it sounds like humming, it sounds like the wind blowing through the trees, and surprisingly, many say it sounds like… a mosquito,” Hussain says.
for most people who suffer tinnitus in his opinion, the sound made by mosquitoes is harmless background noise. For others, it can cause communication problems, meaning it can make it difficult to have an easy conversation or sleep with someone. Those with tinnitus are also more prone to anxiety or depression. Husain says that loud and continuous noise, such as a mosquito, can make tinnitus worse.
The song of cicadas does not have the same effect on everyone. It may be comforting to some. Because some people’s tinnitus gets worse when there is no sound. In this case, the sound of mosquitoes can act as soothing white noise.
No permanent damage
However, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, no matter how loud the noise they make, it can’t harm anyone’s hearing. Hearing loss is something that gets worse over time with repeated exposure to loud noises. Husain says that the sound of mosquitoes is not loud enough or long enough to cause permanent damage.
Other everyday sources of noise pose a higher risk. Constant exposure to the sound of highways, airports, industrial facilities or household appliances such as blenders and hair dryers can be disturbing, he said. And they can affect a person’s emotional state.
“If you’re exposed to very loud noises for part of the day, at school or at work, it can fill you with more stress, make you more irritable,” she explains.
Unlike the highway or the airport, mosquitoes won’t be with us for long. Only in summer.