Health & Medicine
Hearing Loss High If You Don't Turn The Sound Down
Kathleen Lees
First Posted: Feb 28, 2015 12:19 AM EST
The World Health Organization said Friday that close to half of 12 to 35-year-olds are listening to unsafe levels of music on their personal audio devices or cellphones.
"Teenagers and young people can better protect their hearing by keeping the volume down on personal audio devices, wearing earplugs when visiting noisy venues, and using carefully fitted, and, if possible, cancelling earphones or headphones," the health organization stated, in a news release.
According to the American Osteopathic Association, up to 120 decibels or the equivalent of a rock concert is too loud to be listening to on a personal device. And just an hour and 15 minutes can be all it takes for to harm your hearing. The WHO recommends that young people take listening breaks to prevent this damage, as well as lower the volume on their device to a lower setting.
The findings showed that about 40 percent of teens and young adults are exposed to damaging levels of sound throughout life, anywhere from bars and nightclubs to sports events and other social activities.
WHO estimates even suggest that above 85 decibels for eight hours or 100 decibels for 15 minutes could be unsafe, according to The Associated Press.
As a general rule, "where you cannot understand conversation around you, you know that this is too loud," concluded Dr. Shelly Chadha, a WHO expert on hearing loss.
See Now:
NASA's Juno Spacecraft's Rendezvous With Jupiter's Mammoth Cyclone
©2024 ScienceWorldReport.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. The window to the world of science news.
More on SCIENCEwr
First Posted: Feb 28, 2015 12:19 AM EST
The World Health Organization said Friday that close to half of 12 to 35-year-olds are listening to unsafe levels of music on their personal audio devices or cellphones.
"Teenagers and young people can better protect their hearing by keeping the volume down on personal audio devices, wearing earplugs when visiting noisy venues, and using carefully fitted, and, if possible, cancelling earphones or headphones," the health organization stated, in a news release.
According to the American Osteopathic Association, up to 120 decibels or the equivalent of a rock concert is too loud to be listening to on a personal device. And just an hour and 15 minutes can be all it takes for to harm your hearing. The WHO recommends that young people take listening breaks to prevent this damage, as well as lower the volume on their device to a lower setting.
The findings showed that about 40 percent of teens and young adults are exposed to damaging levels of sound throughout life, anywhere from bars and nightclubs to sports events and other social activities.
WHO estimates even suggest that above 85 decibels for eight hours or 100 decibels for 15 minutes could be unsafe, according to The Associated Press.
As a general rule, "where you cannot understand conversation around you, you know that this is too loud," concluded Dr. Shelly Chadha, a WHO expert on hearing loss.
See Now: NASA's Juno Spacecraft's Rendezvous With Jupiter's Mammoth Cyclone