By Pauline Dinnauer, Au.D.
Avoiding noise-induced trauma is arguably one of the best ways to reduce your chances of hearing loss. However, while everybody knows that explosive noise like construction equipment and jet engines can damage your ears, fewer people are aware of another, more common culprit. I'm speaking about music.
These days, I expect most people own a smartphone that they use to listen to music. The advent of streaming services like Spotify and Google Play Music makes enjoying your favorite music incredibly easy to do. Unfortunately, if you're careless, it's also a surefire way to raise your risk for noise-induced hearing loss.
I'd like to submit a few facts for your consideration:
The human ear can safely listen to sounds up to 70 decibels (dB).
Normal conversation averages 60 dB.
Sounds above 70 dB for a prolonged period of time can cause hearing damage.
Sounds above 85 dB can result in permanent hearing damage.
Headphones are capable of emitting a maximum sound level of 85 to 110 dB,
Over-the-ear headphones are a much better choice than earbuds. Not only do you not have to worry about funneling sound directly into your eardrums, but most over-the-ear headphones are also, as a general rule, more comfortable to wear than earbuds.
Fortunately, most apps and devices include some sort of warning once your volume reaches harmful levels. But unfortunately, most of us tend to ignore the warning. To take hearing protection seriously, keep your headphones at no more than 60 percent of their maximum volume.
The right headphones can also make a difference. Although earbuds are popular now, I'd caution against using them too excessively, for a few reasons.
First, because they deliver sound directly into the ear canal, there's a much greater risk of damaging your ears if the volume gets too loud. There's nothing between your ears and the sound to protect you. Earbuds can also push earwax deeper into the ears, causing blockages that affect your hearing, making you raise the volume even more.
Over-the-ear headphones are a much better choice. Not only do you not have to worry about funneling sound directly into your eardrums, but most over-the-ear headphones are also, as a general rule, more comfortable to wear than earbuds. Better yet, higher-end headphones often have noise-canceling functionality, further reducing your need to crank up the volume.
It's neither feasible nor reasonable to expect people to stop listening to music. But there’s no reason we can't protect our hearing while we enjoy music. Keeping the volume low and limiting exposure is the first step, as the second, I suggest that using over-the-ear headphones instead of earbuds.
Pauline Dinnauer, Au.D., is the vice president of audiological care at Connect Hearing, a division of Sonova and provider of hearing healthcare at clinics around the U.S. This originally appeared on Hearing Health & Technology Matters.
Learn more about headphone and earbud safety and our Keep Listening prevention campaign.
