- More than half of young adults have been alerted by their device that they’re listening to music dangerously loud
- But only 42% say they actually bother to turn it down
- More than a billion young adults worldwide at risk of hearing loss due to unsafe sound levels
More than half of young adults between 18-44 (50.2%) say they get alerted by their device that their music is too loud, potentially causing damage, yet 42% say they don’t limit their volume.
The survey, of more than 2,000 people in Britain, showed that nearly nine in 10 young adults are using headphones to listen to music every day, according to Specsavers. Of those, 24% admit to listening to music through headphones for 5-10 hours each week.
Cambridge Journal previously reported that 1.1 billion teenagers and young adults around the world are at hearing loss due to the unsafe use of personal audio equipment and exposure to high levels of sound at events.
There are 12-million adults in the UK who are deaf, have hearing loss or tinnitus, according to RNID.
“The convenience of smartphones and headphones, and even streaming platforms, make it accessible for us to listen to our favourite songs on the go,” said Specsavers chief audiologist Gordon Harrison.
“However, our survey found that there are far too many people ignoring the warning signs on their phones, recommending the user to turn the volume down to a suitable limit.”
The survey by Specsavers also revealed that people aged 18-44 are often unaware when it comes to hearing protection, with a common misconception that hearing problems start in older age.
“Listening to music too loud for a long period of time can not only cause hearing damage in the future, but can cause a range of problems at that moment too,” added Harrison.
“Once your hair cells that respond to sound and send impulses to the brain are overstimulated, they may stop responding to sound through headphones. This may result in temporary hearing loss that can last anything from a few minutes once you stop, to a couple of days.”
He added that tinnitus, a ringing or high-pitched sound in your ears, can develop as a result of listening to loud music too frequently, and not following the right precautions. “[This] is why turning your music down to a safe level is so important at such a young age,” he concluded.
