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Radio Shows | MP3 Players and Hearing Loss | mp3 … wma … wav

I must be the only person who doesn't use one because I can't go anywhere without seeing in them, in the gym, the park, coffee shop. That makes two of us. Two old college professors who don't own either an iPod or an MP3 player. But the point is my hearing is still pretty darn good and the bigger point is personal stereos can cause hearing loss. We know research shows up to 40% of 18 to 24 year olds listen to personal stereos for more than an hour every day. That's considered long-term exposure and if the volume is turned up, you can bet on hearing damage. But most of us don't even think about it because it happens so gradually over a long period of time. Today's advanced technology created devices that lets people listen for a long period of time. Plus MP3 players can go past a hundred decibels. That's like standing 5 yards from a jackhammer. We have a quick and easy way for you to see if you're overdoing it. After listening to your MP3 player turned it off without adjusting the volume. Eight hours later turn it back on, if it's too loud you were damaging your ears. One of the first signs you've damaged your hearing is if you experienced tinnitus, a ringing, buzzing or tone coming from inside your ear. If it is loud enough, for long enough you're going to cause permanent damage and no medical device yet can restore your hearing to what it once was. So if you love your music save your ears!


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The Mayo Clinic is a not-for-profit medical practice dedicated to the diagnosis and treatment of virtually every type of complex illness. The Mayo Clinic has an excellent reputation as a pioneer and innovator in medicine - patient care, medical research and academic education. It is part of Mayo Clinic's mission to serve as a reliable source of health information. There is some information about the risks associated with MP3 players here.

The National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD) is one of the Institutes that comprise the National Institutes of Health (NIH). NIH is the Federal government's focal point for the support of biomedical research. NIH's mission is to uncover new knowledge that will lead to better health for everyone. Simply described, the goal of NIH research is to acquire new knowledge to help prevent, detect, diagnose, and treat disease and disability. NIH is part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIDCD is mandated to conduct and support biomedical and behavioral research and research training in the normal and disordered processes of hearing, balance, smell, taste, voice, speech, and language and are an excellent source of information.

The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) is the professional, scientific, and credentialing association for more than 123,000 members and affiliates who are audiologists, speech-language pathologists, and speech, language, and hearing scientists. ASHA has also commented and has some scary statistics on the issue MP3 players and their affect on hearing here and here.

Health Canada /is the Federal department responsible for helping Canadians maintain and improve their health, while respecting individual choices and circumstances. They offer a great deal of consumer health information on their website including MP3 players and their influence on hearing here.

The Hear-it web site has been established and is run by the organization, 'Hear-it AISBL', which includes IFHOH (International Federation of the Hard Of Hearing), AEA (Association Européenne des Audioprothésistes), EHIMA (European Hearing Industry Manufacturers Association) - Knowles, Sonion and Gennum. They offer information about hearing and hearing loss here.
 
 

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