One billion young people are at risk of hearing loss – Headphones and music are the “culprits”

More than one billion teenagers and young people are potentially at risk of losing some of their hearing due to frequent use of headphones in their ears and listening to very loud music or attending live music concerts, a new scientific study warns. The research calls on the world’s governments to take the issue more seriously and urgently prioritize new policies “safe listening”.

The researchers, led by Dr. Lorraine Dillard of the Department of ENT at the Medical University of N.Carolina, who made the relevant publication in the British medical journal “BMJ Global Health”, analyzed and evaluated all relevant available research (33), which concerned a total of 19,046 people aged 12-34. The global population of 12-34 year olds was estimated at approximately 2.8 billion.

The new study (systematic review and meta-analysis) came to the conclusion that unsafe listening practices, either due to the frequent use of headphones, or frequent participation in events with very loud music, concern respectively 24% and 48% of young people. The global number of adolescents and young adults at potential risk for hearing loss is estimated to range from 670 million to 1.35 billion.

The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that at least 430 million people in the world already have minor or major hearing loss. Teenagers and young people are particularly vulnerable, as the new study shows.

See the scientific publication here:

RES-EMP

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