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Headphones Can Be a Blast, Literally
Used at unsafe volumes, or for too long at a stretch, headphones and earbuds are contributing to an epidemic in hearing loss, especially among young people—prompting the World Health Organization to warn that 1.1 billion young people are at risk of noise-induced hearing loss.
Hearing loss as well as tinnitus—a 24/7 ringing in your ears—could become your new normal due to excess noise exposure or listening too loud for too long.
What’s Considered Safe?
Sounds at or below 70 dB are considered safe, according to the CDC. Yet the majority of headphones can top 100 decibels (dB), which can damage hearing, permanently, in just minutes.
Volume Down
Listen to personal audio devices at a volume level at 50 to 60% of maximum.
Balance
Volume level and length of listening need to be balanced. The longer you listen, the lower the volume should be.
Monitor
Use smartphone apps to monitor your sound exposure. Choose devices with built-in safe listening features.
Fit Matters
Use over-the-ear (and, if possible, noise-canceling) headphones. Over-the-ear models create a better seal to block out ambient sounds.
Hear the World
Take listening breaks, at least once an hour from personal audio devices. Enjoy the quiet and sounds around you!
Workplace regulations call for a cap of 85 dB for eight hours maximum. But this maximum doesn’t take into account recreational noise exposure out of the workplace, which can have the effect of exceeding a daily sound limit over 24 hours.
Setting our headphones or earbuds to be no more than 50 to 60 percent of the maximum helps protect our hearing for life.
Children’s Ears Are Still Developing
As a result, children’s ears require even more protection. The majority of volume-limiting headphones marketed as safe for children use the workplace cap of 85 dB as the maximum volume—but this is for adult ears, and doesn’t factor in time limits.
Our advice to parents: Sit with your kids with their headphones on, with the volume at zero, and slowly turn it up to find their lowest comfortable volume. It may end up well below the 50 percent threshold. Do the same when your kids are 13 and can use earbuds. Don’t worry: Turning it up briefly for a favorite song is allowed!
If it sounds too loud, it is too loud. If we have to shout so our dinner partner can hear us, it’s too loud. If we can hear music coming out of our child's headphones or the person sitting next to us on the bus or subway, it’s damaging their hearing.