Digital Music and Your Hearing

Ear buds give off more sound pressure than headphones that simply cover the ear. If too much pressure reaches your ear drum, you risk permanent hearing loss.

In this age of iPods and other portable music players, music travels with us wherever we go. But you may be putting your hearing in danger if you play music too loud and too long.

Keith Matsuoka, MD, supervising physician for our Hearing Center at Union City and our Audiology department at Fremont, offers some tips on healthy hearing and portable music players.

What's the risk of using portable music players?

Exposure to loud noise can cause hearing loss. With portable music players, people tend to use "ear buds" that you put directly into your ear canal. This gives off more sound pressure than headphones that simply cover the ear. If too much pressure reaches your ear drum, you risk permanent hearing loss.

How loud is too loud?

Sound pressure is measured in decibels (dB). A typical conversation, for example, is about 60 dB. If you're exposed to short term sound of more than 100 dB or longterm (for more than four hours) sound of more than 90 dB, you may be at risk for permanent hearing loss.

How do I know if I'm playing my music too loud?

If you turn off your portable music player and you can't hear clearly for a brief time, or if there's ringing in your ears, then you're probably playing your music too loud.