More than one billion young people are at risk of hearing impairment or hearing loss because of exposure to loud noise from personal listening devices and at loud music venues, according to a recent study published in the BMJ Global Health.¹

In this systematic review and meta-analysis, researchers aimed to find out the prevalence of unsafe listening practices from exposure to personal listening devices (PLDs) such as ear buds, headphones and loud entertainment venues in the age group ranging between 12 and 34 years. They also sought to determine the number of people at risk of hearing loss consequent to this practice. Thirty-three studies (corresponding to data from 35 records) conducted between 2000 and 2021 involving 19,046 participants were selected; 17 studies related to use of PLDs, while the remaining 18 focused on loud entertainment venues.

Upon unsafe exposure to PLDs, the pooled prevalence was estimated to be 23.81%. For loud entertainment venues, the prevalence was estimated to be 48.20%. The meta-analysis further estimated that up to 1.35 billion (range 0.67 to 1.35 billion) young persons could be at risk of loss of hearing from exposure to unsafe listening practices.

Unsafe listening is quite prevalent in society, as also indicated in this study. It is recognized as a modifiable risk factor for hearing loss in teenagers and young adults. The findings of this study urge policymakers to formulate and implement policies regarding unsafe exposure to sound for safe listening to prevent hearing loss.

Reference

1. Dillard LK, et al. Prevalence and global estimates of unsafe listening practices in adolescents and young adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis. BMJ Glob Health. 2022 Nov;7(11):e010501. doi: 10.1136/bmjgh-2022-010501.