Why Your Headphones Are Making Noise As Loud As A CHAINSAW That Could Leave You Deaf, Experts Warn

Wireless headphones could be leading to deafness because of the harmful levels of noise they transmit directly into your ear canal, scientists warn.

Over-the-ear listening devices are considered safer because they block out background noise more effectively, meaning wearers are less likely to turn up the volume on music or podcasts.

EU law and World Health Organization guidelines state that the safe noise level from headphones is 100 decibels (dB), which is equivalent to an ambulance siren reaching your eardrum.

However, Dr Sam Couth, professor of audiology at the University of Manchester, warns that some headphones on the market reach 120dB, which is roughly equivalent to the noise of a chainsaw or a jet plane taking off.

“It’s not just the level of exposure that’s important, but also the duration of exposure,” he told the Telegraph.

“For an 85 dB environment, the maximum safe exposure time is eight hours.

“For every 3 dB increase, the exposure time is halved, i.e. four hours for 88 dB, two hours for 91 dB, and so on.

“So at 120 dBA, the maximum safe exposure time is about 30 seconds.”

Dr Harvey Dillon, professor of hearing science at the University of Manchester, added: “If over-ear headphones completely surround the ear, they are likely to block out background noise, meaning people are unlikely to turn up the volume of music to the same level, making them safer.”

In a paper published in the journal BMJ Global Health last year, a team of international scientists warned that one billion young people aged 12 to 34 worldwide were at risk of hearing loss due to the use of headphones and loud concert halls.

They explained that the damage is due to the effect of loud noise on the thousands of tiny hairs in the inner ear that are responsible for translating vibrations into sound.

Overstimulation of these fragile hairs can cause them to break and prevent them from regenerating, leading to hearing loss.

Experts say that noise-canceling features on many devices, as well as noise-canceling headphones, can help reduce the overall noise level and therefore prevent hearing damage.

But it is not a “miracle solution”.

Dr Couth says noise cancellation can be a “good thing” because “the music you’re trying to listen to isn’t competing with background noise, so there’s less need to turn up the volume”.

But not all devices have decent noise cancellation, he says. “It’s still possible to reach potentially harmful sound levels with noise cancellation turned on.”

Professor Michael Stone, lead researcher at the University of Manchester, adds that the “screech” of Tube trains is unlikely to be “damped” by noise reduction features because it is “very high-pitched”.

However, over-ear headphones could prove an effective solution, he says.

A survey earlier this year found that 40% of 18-44 year-olds who received loud noise alerts on their phone said they ignored the warning.

Nearly half of those surveyed in the survey by eye and hearing specialists Specsavers said they had received such a warning.

Gordon Harrison, Chief Audiologist at Specsavers, recommends a ’60/60 rule’ when using earphones or any other type of headphones.

“The general rule is to only use headphones for 60 minutes a day, at up to 60 percent volume,” he said.