Young people may need to start going on a new kind of diet ““ a noise diet.
Audiologists and hearing researchers say this generation, termed by some the “MP3 generation,” needs to dramatically cut back on the amount of loud music it listens to before it develops widespread and permanent hearing problems.
Megan Lee, a first-year communication studies student, said some of her friends are already experiencing the effects of damaged hearing.
“They put up the volume of their iPods really high because they’re already going deaf and can no longer hear the music at a moderate level,” she said. “I listen to my music at a normal level, but I haven’t exposed myself to as much loud noise as most people have, so my hearing is still intact.”
This form of hearing damage is highly preventable but has no cure, said Andy Groves, a researcher from the House Ear Institute, a nonprofit organization in Los Angeles aimed at advancing hearing through research and education.
“There is a direct cause and effect relationship; exposing the ears to loud noise for prolonged periods of time kills the sensory hair cells in the inner ear critical for hearing,” Groves said.
Once the damage is done, it will be permanent, Groves said. When the ears’ hair cells die, they do not regenerate, so the conversion of sound into electrical signals for perception in the brain does not occur and messages coming through the ears become lost.
“People need to understand that if they want to listen to loud music, they are going to go deaf many, many years sooner than they expect would occur from normal wear and tear of age,” he added.
Groves said while he too enjoys his iPod, he maintains its sound at a moderate and healthy level.
The volume on an iPod can be played well beyond 100 decibels, the equivalent of listening to a pneumatic drill for an extended period of time, experts say.
The safety level set by the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health is 85 decibels of sound exposure for no more than eight hours. After that point, the ears will suffer permanent damage.
To protect from this permanent nerve damage in the ears, the “60 percent, 60 minute rule” should be applied when blasting an iPod, said UCLA audiologist and associate clinical professor of head and neck surgery Alison Grimes. This means that people should not listen with the volume up more than 60 percent full and for longer than one hour a day.
Byron Winick, a first-year history and political science student, admits to breaking this rule and said he used to listen to his iPod with the volume set higher than two-thirds capacity, well over 60 percent.
“I put the volume up because I like to be in my own world, hearing only the music,” Winick said. “But my hearing is not that great right now because of all the loud noise I’ve exposed myself to.”
Experts say a good rule of thumb in determining when volume is at a dangerous level is when other people can hear the music coming from the listener’s iPod.
This generation’s need for sound has contributed to the increasing number of people in their teens and early 20s developing severe hearing problems and needing to wear hearing aids, Grimes said.
Most of her young patients, she added, admit to exposing themselves to prolonged loud noises over extended periods of time without protection.
Some ways to continue listening to the music you love at a safe level include wearing earplugs while playing a loud instrument or wearing outside noise-canceling headphones, Grimes said,
Since most people do not take protective measures in terms of maintaining normal hearing, Grimes said, cumulative hearing loss occurs, she added.
Dr. Jose Fayad, a physician and researcher at the House Clinic and House Ear Institute, said this form of noise trauma develops slowly and gathers damage over years.
The first sign there is a problem can be constant ringing in the ears or a deficit in recognizing high frequency sounds.
High frequency sounds are essential for understanding language, especially English, in which consonants are high frequency sounds, compared to vowels, which are low frequency sounds, Fayad said.
“This impairment will severely damage your ability to understand speech, engage in conversations, and enjoy music,” Fayad said. “It is like playing the piano without the higher keys.”
Researchers at the House Ear Institute are working on ways to cure hearing loss by attempting to regrow hair cells once they are lost. Lower vertebrates, such as birds, are able to regenerate hair cells and regain hearing after deafness in a few weeks, Groves said.
The goal is to understand why humans cannot do the same.
This research may be a breakthrough in treating hearing-impaired populations, but Groves said it is a very long-term project that may not leave the lab for commercial application for another 40 years.
For this reason, Groves said prevention and education are important today.
The “MP3 generation” is in the middle of a hearing loss epidemic that must be controlled, Fayad said.
“Preserve your ears and hearing as if you are on a sound diet,” Fayad said. “Stay away from those high amplitude sounds like you would stay away from high saturated fats while trying to lose weight.”