Earpiece: Pleasant but Dangerous

It could be fitting, handy and fashionable but for people who prefer to use the earpiece or headphones to make or receive calls and listen to music, experts warn that an over-exposure to excessive sound levels can damage your ears resulting in permanent noise-induced hearing loss.
Noises louder than 110 decibels are known to cause hearing problems such as temporary deafness and tinnitus (ringing in the ears).
A report from the European Union’s Scientific Committee on Emerging and Newly Identified Health Risks (SCENIHR) estimates that 5-10 per cent of personal music player users risk permanent hearing loss if they listen for more than an hour a day at high volume settings for at least five years.
In addition, one thing seems to be more noticeable with headphones is a decreasing sensitivity to sound levels over time, as the ears adapt to loud sounds. The listener perceives a gradual drop in loudness even though the volume control setting hasn’t changed.
The audio isolation of headphones tends to highlight this dulling effect. It is all too easy for headphone listeners to turn up the volume to the point where hearing is at risk.
However, hearing loss is preventable. You just have to realise that loud sounds do cause damage to your ears. Also, ear buds make it so that loud noises can be brought directly into ear canals. The best way to avoid Noise- Induced Hearing Loss (NIHL) is to keep your audio low.
You can also determine the number of times you use the earpiece or headphones. It’s a personal decision you have to make. For instance, if you listen to audio while running for hours, try as much as possible to keep the volume low and when the music gets really exciting and you don’t want to miss out on the rhythm and lyrics, you may increase it, but, make sure that it is not for a long time.