Reading Material on Headphones and Hearing Loss

To begin with, a humongous welcome to delaruss. The power of Fretbuzz.net grows with each passing moment.

Now, speaking of power, here are some clips about hearing loss.

The background on this is that I worked last night on the “duet” file in the Box.net widget. I have to say that after, I don’t know, an hour or so of GarageBand and headphone use, my ears felt a little taxed. No ringing, as happened after I stumbled upon Soul Asylum playing some motherf’n LOUD rock in a Paris bar back in 1995, but tender.

So this morning, I did some article searching. It looks to me like the consensus is to limit listening through headphones to one hour daily, preferably at around 60% volume.

The 60% volume bit sort of spoils listening to music on the Metro, which is of my key listening moments of the day. I also shudder to think of times I’ve taken long flights with the trusty iPod, cranked way up to block out noise and relieve the mild anxiety that comes with hurtling through the air at 37,000 feet.

Anyway, here are the stories, excerpted. If anyone has thoughts to add, please do. I’m a little paranoid on this one.

• Study Warns of Hearing Loss From Music Players, STEPHEN CASTLE, 13 October 2008, The New York Times

Users listening at high volumes for more than an hour a day each week risk permanent *hearing loss* after five years. This is equivalent to 5 percent to 10 percent of the listeners, which may be 2.5 million to 10 million people in the European Union, the study concluded.

The report refers to a 2004 study that recommends limiting listening time to one hour per day and setting the volume to no more than 60 percent of maximum sound output when using headphones that are placed over the ears — and even less when using ear buds.

It said another study suggested restricting the maximum output level of personal music players to 90 decibels.

• There’s More to Ears Than Just Wax, NICHOLAS BAKALAR, 13 May 2008, The New York Times

Repeated or continuous exposure to loud noise can cause gradual and cumulative damage. The louder the sound, the less time it takes to cause permanent injury.

How loud is too loud? ”If you use iPod earbuds as a way of masking out environmental sound, it’s probably too loud,” Dr. Rauch said. ”And if you can hear someone else’s music while they’re listening to an iPod, they’re doing damage to their ears.” As for standing close to the speakers at a rock concert, Dr. Rauch said, ”All the ’60s and ’70s rockers are as deaf as can be.”

• Talk Tech: Resolve to Turn Your iPod Down, Lee Gomes, The Wall Street Journal

Q: So should people give up MP3 players, or loud home-entertainment systems?

A: If you do it moderately, it’s probably OK. But if you really make it too loud, it’s not healthy.

• Apple Offers iPod Volume Curb, Associated Press, 30 March 2006

[iPods] can produce sounds of more than 115 decibels, a volume that can damage the hearing of a person exposed to the sound for more than 28 seconds per day, according to the complaint filed in U.S. District Court in San Jose, Calif.

• THE CLAIM — MP3 players can cause hearing loss, By ANAHAD O’CONNOR, The New York Times, 6 September 2005

To be sure, no one is certain what levels of noise the average MP3 listener is experiencing. But a large study of *iPod* users between 18 and 54 in Australia last month might provide some insight. The study, by the National Acoustic Laboratory in Sydney, found that about a quarter of the people surveyed kept their iPods at volumes that could cause long-term hearing damage.

THE BOTTOM LINE — MP3 players may increase the risk of hearing loss for some people.