Do you turn the volume up when your favorite song comes on the radio? Lots of people do that. There’s something intuitive about pumping up the jam. And it’s enjoyable. But, here’s the thing: there can also be considerable damage done.
In the past we weren’t familiar with the relationship between music and hearing loss. That has a lot to do with volume (both in terms of sound intensity and the number of listening sessions in a day). And it’s one of the reasons that lots of today’s musicians are changing their tune to save their hearing.
Musicians And Hearing Loss
It’s a rather famous irony that, later in life, classical composer Ludwig van Beethoven was hard of hearing. He couldn’t hear any of the music he created (except in his head). On one occasion he even needed to be turned around to see the thunderous applause of his audience because he wasn’t able to hear it.
Beethoven is definitely not the only instance of hearing problems in musicians. In more recent times lots of musicians who are well known for playing at very loud volumes are coming forth with their stories of hearing loss.
From Neil Diamond to Eric Clapton to will.i.am, the stories all seem remarkably similar. Musicians spend a large amount of time coping with crowd noise and loud speakers. Noticeable damage including hearing loss and tinnitus will eventually be the result.
Even if You Aren’t a Musician This Could Still be a Problem
You may think that because you aren’t personally a rock star or a musician, this may not apply to you. You’re not playing for huge crowds. And you’re not standing in front of a wall of amplifiers.
But you do have a set of earbuds and your chosen playlist. And that can be a serious concern. It’s become easy for each one of us to experience music like rock stars do, at way too high a volume.
This one little thing can now become a substantial issue.
So How Can You Protect Your Ears While Listening to Music?
So, first we need to admit there’s an issue (that’s kind of always the first step, but it’s especially true in this case). People are putting their hearing in danger and have to be made aware of it (especially more impressionable, younger people). But you also need to take some further steps too:
- Wear ear protection: Put in earplugs when you go to a concert or any other live music show. They won’t really lessen your experience. But your ears will be protected from further damage. (And don’t think that using hearing protection will make you uncool because it’s what most of your favorite musicians are doing.).
- Control your volume: Some modern smartphones will alert you when you’re going beyond safe limits on volume. You should adhere to these safety measures if you value your long-term hearing.
- Download a volume-checking app: You are probably not aware of the actual volume of a rock concert. Wherever you find yourself, the volume of your environment can be calculated with one of many free apps that can be downloaded to your smartphone. This will help you monitor what’s dangerous and isn’t.
Limit Exposure
It’s rather straight forward math: the more often you put your ears at an increased risk, the more substantial your hearing loss later in life could be. Eric Clapton, for example, has completely lost his hearing. He likely wishes he started wearing earplugs a lot sooner.
Reducing exposure, then, is the best way to reduce damage. That can be tricky for people who work around live music. Ear protection may provide part of an answer there.
But turning the volume down to reasonable levels is also a good idea.
