Music-Induced Hearing Loss: Big Problem but Who’s at Risk?
It’s generally understood that loud noise is a risk for hearing loss for people who shoot guns or work in loud factories.
What is less recognized is the risk of noise-induced hearing loss among musicians. We would expect musicians who played rock n’ roll concerts in the ’60s to have hearing loss today. But what about musicians who play acoustic symphonic, marching band, bluegrass, or jazz music?
Hearing loss resulting from playing music is referred to as “music-induced hearing loss” or MIHL. This is the same thing as noise-induced hearing loss, with more respect to the sound being “music” instead of “noise.”
The principles of risk and how we can protect ourselves are the same, whether it’s noise-induced or music-induced.
Let’s look deeper at this relationship.
Musicians are More at Risk for Noise Damage
Like most people in the public, musicians are not generally aware of their risk for noise-induced hearing loss. Several important studies have been published that clearly show how likely many people are, including musicians, to underestimate their risk.
The reasons for this usually point to the trust people have in public concert venues, movie theatres, and employers to inform them if there is some danger to their health. Despite State and Federal industrial and community noise level regulations, the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) is underfunded and understaffed and therefore has a very difficult task with enforcing these regulations and keeping people safe in this regard.
Some professions have a strict adherence to OSHA noise exposure standards, such as the airline industry and large manufacturing companies, though many do not. Consider the noise levels of a small bar or restaurant that frequently has live music. Or consider the noise levels of a packed sports arena. Though the exposure of noise to the public is high and can cause damage to hearing, the risk is even greater for individuals who work daily in these environments.
This especially includes musicians.
Research has found that noise-induced hearing loss is greatest among musicians than most other professions. The research has confirmed that this holds up despite the genre of music or the type of venues in which musicians play.
The most likely explanation for this is that musicians are known for spending unthinkable hours in practice- and they typically play a mixture of small and large venues. Also, musicians tend to spend greater than average amounts of time listening to loud music, either at concerts or through electronic earphones.
Of course, this does not mean that every musician has noise-induced hearing loss. But there is an alarming trend that suggests musicians are more at risk than most other people.
Music-Induced Hearing Loss is on the Rise, and Use of Hearing Protection Remains Low
There are many high-quality studies on this topic, dating back 30 years or more. A good recent example is a study published in 2017 in the Journal of Occupational Health, by Pouryaghoub and colleagues.
These researchers examined the hearing (audiometric) data from 125 musicians, adjusting their analyses for factors such as age, other risks of noise exposure, complaints about hearing loss, and use of protective equipment, such as earmuffs and plugs.
Their data showed that there was evidence of a noise notch (a type of hearing loss specific to noise exposure that shows up as a high-frequency notch on an audiogram) in at least one ear in 42.4% of the participants. Tinnitus (ringing or other noises in the ear) was present in 51% of participants. More alarming, the researchers found that only 2% of the participants reported using hearing protection.
This data clearly shows that musicians are at high risk for noise-induced hearing loss and tinnitus. The researchers clearly showed how uncommon the use of hearing protection was for the musicians in their study.
This all points to a simple fact: hearing loss is preventable as long as people are aware of their risks and use protection.
Many People Are Confused About the Right Hearing Protection to Use
The biggest problem people face with the use of hearing protection is knowing what the options are and how to select the appropriate protection for the activity.
Often people will complain that the hearing protection they are using is uncomfortable or limits their ability to communicate with other people between the moments loud noise is occurring.
Examples of this include musicians who complain that earplugs muffle the music and make it less rich sounding. Or industrial workers or restaurant servers complain that their environment isn’t always noisy, and they need to hear coworkers or customers to do their job effectively. This leads to people getting in the habit of not wearing protection or wearing it ineffectively.
The Solution to Music-Induced Hearing Loss is Public Awareness
By raising public awareness of what sounds can damage their ears and cause hearing loss and tinnitus, we can greatly reduce the number of people who lose their jobs or need to start wearing hearing aids, because of noise-induced hearing loss.
There are now many new innovative types of hearing protection available. These range from passive earplugs, custom earplugs, and electronic earplugs and muffs.
Musicians need to be particularly aware of their risk for noise-induced hearing loss as this can impact their ability to play music, which for many is an occupation or life-long passion. What a shame it would be if you spent many years of your life learning to play or sing professionally, only to lose that opportunity due to hearing loss or constant tinnitus.
This is why we created this website. If only one person learns something about their risk for noise-induced hearing loss and begins taking their hearing seriously, we will have succeeded.
Please check this website for more information on how to protect your hearing, including research articles, answers to frequently asked questions, and product reviews.
References
Pouryaghoub, G, Mehrdad, R, & Pourhosein, S. (2017) Noise-induced hearing loss among professional musicians. Journal of Occupational Health, 59(1): 33-37. https://doi.org/10.1539/joh.16-0217-OA
