Listen up and heed the warnings from a young age

Post on 9th January 2017

If you list the parental advice when growing up, the one about ‘turn the noise down or you’ll go deaf’ is sure to figure.

Parents may not have appreciated our taste in music or the high volume, but they had a point because doctors fear people are losing hearing earlier in life.

While much hearing loss is age related and mostly affects the over-50s, there are warnings that younger people are increasingly at risk from noise-induced hearing loss.

Just consider the popularity of mobile devices and the ability to close off the world while listening to a whole library of personal music favourites no matter where you are. But if the volume is set too high for your earphones and headphones, you could be causing real damage to your ears.

Indeed the World Health Organisation has warned that more than one million young people are at risk of hearing loss from personal audio devices, concerts and exposure to other loud noises.

The challenge now is to get people thinking about protecting their hearing from a young age so they will appreciate the benefits in later life.

No one is advising them to stop listening to music but to keep the volume down. It’s also worth noting that earphones can potentially do more damage than traditional headphones which cover the entire ear if the music is too loud.

At 100 percent of the iPod volume for example, earphones might make around 105 decibels and the over-the-ear headphones might make 97 decibels. Experts advise setting the volume of your music no higher than 80 percent, or around 85 decibels.

Permanent damage to the ear can happen in minutes. There is also the cumulative effect of experiencing loud noise over the years which can cause harm.

So please listen up to the advice of experts and keep the volume down and use ear protection where necessary. If you have any concerns, at whatever age, you can seek help and advice at your local Scrivens Opticians & Hearing Care branch.