Health Highlights | Hearing loss and young people
Key Takeaways:
- A recent study warns that millions of young adults could face hearing loss due to unsafe listening habits.
- The biggest threats to our hearing are live music events and personal listening devices.
- Experts recommend wearing ear plugs, turn down the music and give your ears a break.
Dr. Chris Workman loves to crank up his music from time to time.
The OSF Audiologist says since it's his profession, he knows the dangers of loud noise and the lasting impact it can have on his hearing.
Our listening habits could be doing more harm than good. Especially for younger people.
A recent published study cautions that between 670 million and more than 1.3 billion teens and young adults could face hearing loss due to unsafe habits.
Researchers concentrated on two main sources of loud music exposure: live music events and personal listening devices like headphones.
Listening to sounds at a decibel level of 85 or higher for long or a repeated amount of time can cause hearing loss.
“A lot of us feel invincible at that age, so we tend not to take that message to heart," Dr. Workman says. "Hopefully they understand the potential damage they could do.”
Dr. Workman offers a few helpful tips like wearing protection at concerts and sitting in the back of the venue, if possible.
He also says to wear ear plus and turn the music down on your headphones.
If you're concerned you may be experiencing hearing loss, Dr. Workman recommends scheduling a hearing test.