MP3 Players Can Cause Hearing Loss

(June 22, 2010) - Going for a stroll with those ear buds and an MP3 player could leave you with some short-term hearing loss. (Read about "The Ear & Hearing") Temporary changes in hearing sensitivity are associated with potential harmful effects of listening to an MP3 player, according to a report in the Archives of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

"It is well known that excessive occupational noise exposure (Read about "Noise & Hearing") can lead to noise-induced hearing loss," the authors write as background in the study. The increasing popularity and availability of portable music players has caused concern about the potential hazardous effects on hearing. "Excessive noise exposure can lead to metabolic and/or mechanical effects resulting in alterations of the structural elements of the organ of Corti [the inner ear organ in mammals that contains auditory sensory cells or 'hair cells']. The primary damage is concentrated on the outer hair cells, which are more vulnerable to acoustic overstimulation that inner hair cells."

Researchers studied 21 participants who were exposed to pop-rock music in six different sessions using two types of headphones at multiple preset settings of the MP3 player. The study included a noise exposure group consisting of ten men and 11 women (age 19 to 28) who listened to pop-rock music for one hour. A second control group consisted of 14 men and 14 women, also age 19 to 28 years, who were not exposed to the music.

All participants in the noise exposure group listened to an MP3 player for a maximum of six sessions at varying volume levels, using two separate types of headphones. These tests were designed to study the short-term effects on the auditory system of young adults listening to an MP3 player for one hour. Hearing in both groups was evaluated before and after one hour. Researchers found significant changes between pre-exposure and post-exposure measurements.