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iPods and Hearing
September 22, 2008 |
The newest iPod or MP3 player is probably high on your child’s wish list. But
pediatricians say parents should keep in mind the affects those gadgets can have
on hearing. “A common concern for parents especially is that children are
listening to music too loud with their headphones and we know that hearing loss
can happen with headphones that are too loud,” says Dr. Thomas Schiller who is a
pediatrician with Lee Memorial Health System.
Researchers are still looking into how loud is too loud when it comes to younger
people using headphones. “If we could measure it and see that it’s between 60
and 85 decibels we know that’s going to cause hearing loss,” says Dr. Schiller.
While there is no easy way to for parents to measure the decibel level of their
child’s headphones there are obvious symptoms if the sound is too loud. “If the
child is having ringing in the ears after listening to headphones that’s
definitely too much.”
Dr. Schiller also warns that it’s not just loud music that could affect your
child’s hearing. “Any kind of high volume experiences, either headphones or
shooting guns or concerts, are going to subject the ears to too much sound to
the point where there will be hearing loss from it.”
Pediatricians advise children and teens to keep their headphone volume at a
moderate level and try not to listen to loud music for sustained periods of
time. Another good tip for parents, if you can hear the music your child is
listening to coming from their headphones the volume is probably loud enough to
cause hearing damage. |
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