For many years scientists have been gathering data to support their findings that a pill might be able to limit the damage that loud noise causes to hearing. Human trials are now about to commence. If all goes well, evidence will show that the new substance when dissolved in a drink can make a difference to the results of a hearing test.

This progress is just a small step towards the creation of a pill that can cure hearing loss due to exposure to loud noise. The significant progress made in recent years has led to an increase in the amount of effort towards reaching the ultimate goal.

There is no intention to replace ear protection and ear plugs with this new medication. It is intended to provide additional protection from hearing loss because standard protections haven't totally prevented the problem.

Federal reports show that occupational hearing loss is the second most reported occupational illness or injury. Approximately 10 million Americans live with permanent hearing loss caused by long-term exposure or a sudden burst of loud noise.

The number of Americans believed to be at risk from hearing damage due to working in the mining, construction, agriculture and manufacturing industries is said to be in the region of 30 million. Musicians also have a greater risk of suffering from hearing damage.

Hearing loss does not always occur at work. Certain hobbies also pose a high risk of hearing damage including riffle shooting, race car driving and motorcycling. Earplugs and specialized sound canceling earmuffs do help but don't always prevent damage from occurring.

Some forms of sound still manage to penetrate the current protection available. Some people are more prone to hearing damage and despite knowing this, do not wear the protection at all. Hearing damage can also occur when certain sounds are able to penetrate the skull and other areas of the head.

Pills to strengthen resistance to hearing damage have been approached in different ways in the past. In 1994 researchers claimed that Israeli military recruits were able to avoid hearing loss due to magnesium supplements in their diet during basic training. The main focus in today's research is the use of antioxidants.

This is due to the fact that the force from loud noise does not always directly cause the damage to someone's hearing. A lot of the damage to a person's ears is actually due to the ear producing chemicals known as free radicals that the inner ear produces after being exposed to loud noise.

Antioxidants present naturally in the ear can neutralize free radicals. During periods of loud noise the free radicals outnumber the antioxidants. The damage that the free radicals cause kills off the hair like receptor cells that produce nerve impulses by converting the sound waves that strike them. The damage caused by the cells dieing is permanent.

Permanent damage from loud noise could be reduced by increasing the levels of antioxidants in the ear's defense against free radicals, and may work by both preventing the damage and also treating damage that has just occurred. Preventing permanent damage to hearing looks quite likely due to promising results from animal testing. The effectiveness of using antioxidants with humans is still approached with caution by some experts. To determine the effectiveness of the antioxidants on humans, more animal tests are needed with varying sound levels and doses.