Julia Belluz at Vox does a deep dive into the increasingly high decibel levels of restaurants.

Being exposed to noise levels above 70 and 80 decibels — which many restaurants boast these days — causes hearing loss over time, Gail Richard, past president of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, told me. This kind of hearing loss is “preventable, but it’s also irreparable,” she added.

I’ve noticed the rising levels, and my wife and I avoid those locations when dining out. The piece outlines ways to fix acoustics, but unsurprisingly, they are expensive.