Your mother was right. Your headphones are too loud – and they could ruin your hearing forever
When we were younger, my sister used to give me an irritated nudge on car rides because she could hear the music coming through my headphones on her side of the car. I’m sure I’m not the only one listening to music a little too loud. Maybe you’ve ignored the people staring at you across the subway who can hear your jams clearly, or your parents’ alarm bells telling you the constant beating could be damaging your eardrums. New research confirms the concerns and suggests that over 1 billion young adults and adolescents worldwide may be at risk of hearing loss as a result of their personal hearing aids (PLDs) or headphones, or from attending entertainment venues such as concerts.
“This overexposure, which many people clearly face, can have adverse effects on their health,” says Dr. Lauren Dillard, study author and postdoctoral fellow at the Medical University of South Carolina wealthand that exposure to loud noises can lead to hearing loss over time.
The study, published Tuesday in BMJ Global Health, analyzed over 30 studies from the past 20 years related to unsafe listening practices, either through the use of headphones or attending loud entertainment events. In the analysis, the prevalence of unsafe listening practices was approximately 24% from headphones and nearly 50% from loud entertainment venues. A total of 20 countries were represented in the study with almost 20,000 participants aged 12 to 34 years. The study found that between 670 million and 1.35 billion young people could be at risk of hearing loss due to headphones or exposure to noisy venues.
Research does not fully capture whether recreational noise exposure can directly lead to permanent hearing loss, but there have been associations between voluntary noise exposure, such as B. how loud you listen to music, and “changes in hearing thresholds” according to the study. Using headphones or going to loud concerts can lead to tinnitus, which is described as ringing in the ears or temporary hearing loss, says Dillard. When the sound returns, the temporary ringing can be disabled. However, some research shows that loud exposure can damage sensory cells over time, although it may take years before significant changes are noticed.
“It’s more incremental and progressive, so it’s not necessarily easy to spot right away,” she says. “In the long term, you could be at risk of permanent damage.”
Increasing smartphone ownership has normalized constant use of headphones, and the World Health Organization (WHO) is warning that the number of young people at risk of hearing loss may have increased in recent years. WHO found that nearly 50% of young adults or adolescents listen to unsafe volume levels through headphones and launched Make listening safe in 2015 to promote safe listening practices: monitoring and limiting the volume of sound consumed, duration of consumption and how often it is consumed. So what sound levels are considered safe?
Lower volume levels can be heard longer compared to higher volume levels. For example, according to the WHO, the sound of a subway train should only be heard for 15 minutes a day. The general guideline is 80 decibels (dB) for 40 hours per week, but this recommendation may vary by region. If you hear 92dB (which can be heard through headphones) then you should limit it to 2.5 hours a week.
The iPhone’s Health app can also warn you when you’re listening to music that’s too loud. According to WHO recommendations, the exposure limit for the health app is 75 dB for 127 hours for seven days, 80 dB for 40 hours for seven days, or 110 dB for two minutes for seven days. Since the music in headphones can reach 100 dB or more, the volume should rarely be at its maximum. Many people hear their headphone music well above 75dB, and noise from bars, clubs and concerts exceeds 100dB.
“Governments, industry and civil society urgently need to prioritize the global prevention of hearing loss by promoting safe listening practices,” the authors write.
The prevention of hearing loss has gained in importance in recent years. Dillard hopes people will realize that they can change their listening habits to lower their risk of hearing loss. Wearing earplugs at loud events, wearing noise-cancelling headphones when possible, keeping volume levels to a minimum, and regular hearing tests can help. It’s also a public health issue and something larger venues should consider when curating their volumes, she says.
“I would really encourage people to think a little longer-term about their health and their hearing health, because we really want to avoid the effects of hearing loss,” Dillard says, pointing out how it can affect your ability to interact with daily life. “What’s so important about noise exposure in terms of hearing loss is that it’s preventable.”
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