Can using AirPods damage your hearing?

AirPods can pump out 100 decibels. That’s loud enough to rival the noise of a motorcycle.

Headphones and earbuds have become ubiquitous since Apple’s AirPods hit the shelves in 2016. They’re nearly as essential as smartphones.

But there’s been a growing buzz about their impact on ears. Cranking them up might be doing more harm than people realize, experts say.

“The World Health Organization right now estimates there’s 1.5 billion people who live with hearing loss and 430 million of those have a disabling loss. It is expected that by 2030, 2.5 billion people will have hearing loss − that’s a billion more than right now in six years,” said Yonah Orlofsky, director of audiology at the New Jersey Eye and Ear medical practice “By 2050, 700 million people will have disabling hearing loss.

“It’s understood that, at least partly, that number is going up is because of noise exposure via headphone use,” said Orlofsky, whose audiology group has offices in Clifton and Englewood that saw 70 patients a day.

Are AirPods bad for your hearing?

AirPods can pump out 100 decibels, at their maximum setting. That’s loud enough to rival the noise of a motorcycle, and it won’t be music to your ears in the long run, medical experts say.

Studies show that 24% of people between the ages of 12 and 35 are listening to their tunes at unsafe levels, putting them at a higher risk of hearing damage, according to the Mayo Clinic. For reference, the clinic notes, normal conversation takes place at 60 decibels while a washing machine operates at 70 or more.

Just 50 minutes of a motorcycle’s rumble at 95 decibels can damage someone’s hearing. Hearing loss is also possible after just 15 minutes of exposure to an approaching subway train or a car horn at 100 decibels, and standing next to a siren at 120 decibels can cause immediate pain or injury.

So regularly exposing your ears to such volumes should raise alarm bells.

Use these AirPod and headphone safety features

Did you know that AirPods and Apple Watches come equipped with safety features? The iPhone’s Health app and the Apple Watch’s Noise app alert users when they’re entering the danger zone.

The Health app on iOS devices allows users to monitor their headphone levels in real-time. It sends notifications if the volume might affect hearing, based on the World Health Organization’s recommendation to keep the volume below 60% of a device’s maximum.

The Noise app on Apple Watch measures environmental sound and alerts users when that exceeds safe thresholds, according to Apple. iOS devices also let users set a maximum headphone volume limit.

Android devices can also include safety features similar to Apple’s, such as volume limiters and notifications that alert users who are listening at too high a volume, according to electronics company Samsung. But they will vary by manufacturer.

“Most audiologists recommend noise-canceling headphones, which block out external noise, allowing you to listen at lower volumes,” said Robert Lahita, a professor of medicine at Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine and also director of the Institute for Autoimmune and Rheumatic Disease at St. Joseph’s Regional Medical Center in Passaic County.

How to protect your hearing when using AirPods, headphones

Lahita, who is writing a book that looks at environmental influences on genes, including how those that affect hearing, recommends the 60/60 rule, which advises listeners to not exceed 60% of the device’s volume and not to listen for more than 60 minutes a day.

Orlofsky agrees and adds that, while there’s not a lot of data to prove it, you might want to use over-the-ear headphones instead of earbuds.

“Over-the-ear headphones may be a little bit safer than in the ear,” he said. Since AirPods and similarly products sit inside the ear canal, “sound is actually designed closer to the earrum, which is closer to the inner ear, and that may be more impactful than just listening to it over the ear.”

Lastly, use both speakers of your audio device, rather than just putting one in an ear.

“If you use one and you’re getting other environmental noises, you may be turning up your volume on the one that you’re using super loud again to compensate,” Orlofsky said.

Gene Myers covers disability and mental health for NorthJersey.com and the USA TODAY Network. For unlimited access to the most important news from your local community, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

E-mail: [email protected]

Twitter: @myersgene