Aiden enjoys music. While he’s out jogging, he listens to Pandora, while working it’s Spotify, and he has a playlist for all his activities: cardio, cooking, video games, you name it. His headphones are almost always on, his life a fully soundtracked event. But the very thing that Aiden loves, the loud, immersive music, could be causing permanent damage to his hearing.
For your ears, there are healthy ways to listen to music and unsafe ways to listen to music. But the more dangerous listening option is often the one most of us choose.
How can listening to music lead to hearing loss?
Over time, loud noises can lead to degeneration of your hearing abilities. We’re used to thinking of hearing loss as a problem associated with aging, but more recent research is revealing that hearing loss isn’t an inherent part of getting older but is instead, the outcome of accumulated noise damage.
It also turns out that younger ears are particularly vulnerable to noise-induced damage (they’re still developing, after all). And yet, young adults are more inclined to be dismissive of the long-term dangers of high volume. So because of extensive high volume headphone usage, there has become an epidemic of hearing loss in young individuals.
Is there a safe way to listen to music?
It’s obviously hazardous to listen to music at max volume. But there is a safer way to listen to your tunes, and it typically involves turning down the volume. The general guidelines for safe volumes are:
- For adults: Keep the volume at no more than 80dB and for no more than 40 hours a week..
- For teens and young children: 40 hours is still fine but decrease the volume to 75dB.
Forty hours per week is roughly five hours and forty minutes per day. Though that might seem like a long time, it can seem to pass rather quickly. Even still, most individuals have a fairly sound concept of keeping track of time, it’s something we’re trained to do efficiently from a really young age.
The more challenging part is keeping track of your volume. On most smart devices, smartphones, and televisions, volume is not calculated in decibels. It’s calculated on some arbitrary scale. Maybe it’s 1-100. But maybe it’s 1-16. You may not have any idea how close to max volume you are or even what max volume on your device is.
How can you listen to tunes while monitoring your volume?
There are a few non-intrusive, easy ways to figure out just how loud the volume on your music actually is, because it’s not all that easy for us to contemplate exactly what 80dB sounds like. Distinguishing 75 from, let’s say, 80 decibels is even more perplexing.
So utilizing one of the numerous noise free monitoring apps is greatly suggested. Real-time volumes of the noise around you will be obtainable from both iPhone and Android apps. In this way, you can make real-time alterations while monitoring your real dB level. Your smartphone will, with the correct settings, let you know when the volume gets too loud.
As loud as a garbage disposal
Generally, 80 dB is about as noisy as your garbage disposal or your dishwasher. That’s not too loud. Your ears will begin to take damage at volumes higher than this threshold so it’s an important observation.
So pay close attention and try to stay away from noise above this volume. If you happen to listen to some music beyond 80dB, don’t forget to limit your exposure. Maybe listen to your favorite song at max volume instead of the entire album.
Listening to music at a loud volume can and will cause you to develop hearing problems over the long run. Hearing loss and tinnitus can be the result. Your decision making will be more informed the more aware you are of when you’re entering the danger zone. And ideally, those decisions lean towards safer listening.
Still have questions about keeping your ears safe? Contact us to go over more options.
