How can musicians protect their hearing?

Being a musician means frequent exposure to noise; in the long term, this can cause significant damage to your hearing. It is therefore important to take precautions to protect your ears.

Why are musicians at increased risk of hearing loss?

Sound travels through the outer, middle, and inner ear before the signal is sent to your brain. The inner ear contains fluid and small hairs to help this process. Loud noises can cause the fluid to slosh around and potentially damage the hair cells of the inner ear; over time, the damage becomes worse and could become permanent.

Musical instruments being played, especially those amplified by modern technology, are an example of the kind of loud sound that causes this damage, as are noisy crowds at concerts. In addition to being as much as four times more likely to develop hearing loss than the general population, musicians are 47% more likely to develop tinnitus.

What can musicians do to prevent hearing loss?

It is easy to underestimate the volume of a studio or concert environment if you are working there, so ask an independent observer whether they think the sound is particularly loud. If the noise levels are too high, you could take a break and temporarily remove yourself from the loud environment. Wearing ear protection whilst exposed to loud sounds is one of the most important things you can do, with special earplugs available for musicians that can be customised to your ears. This not only applies to musicians but also to anyone who regularly listens to music. If you play music on your phone or computer, turn down the volume in the same way that you should consider lowering the speaker volume at a concert.

If you are concerned about potential damage to your hearing, you could visit an audiologist Bristol such as at www.imperialhearing.com/audiologist-near-me/bristol/ to request a hearing test. Doing so means any problems can be identified and mitigated early.

By using adequate hearing protection, musicians can ensure they remain able to hear music and other sounds despite the time they spend in noisy environments.