Loud Music Damaging Hearing of Teens

A leading Canadian researcher has cautioned young people on the dangers of loud music after new research has shown an alarming level of early hearing damage in teenagers.

Larry Roberts of McMaster University, Canada, worked with a team of researchers from the University of São Paulo School of Medicine, Brazil, to look at early hearing damage in 170 young people aged 11 to 17 year old.

After performing detailed hearing tests and interviewing the group, the team found that nearly all engaged in "risky listening habits" by going to parties, clubs and listening to loud music on personal listening devices, and that more than a quarter (28 percent) were already experiencing persistent tinnitus, a ringing or buzzing in the ears that more commonly affects those over 50.

Although Roberts explained that it's common after listening to loud music to experience a ringing in the ears for the next day or so, this brief and temporary tinnitus is still an early warning sign of vulnerability to the damage that noise exposure can cause, and was found in more than half of the participants.

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