Listening to your iPod or mp3 player for several hours at a time could put your hearing at risk, according to the least fun science article ever written.

The editorial, published today in the British Medical Journal, points out that personal music devices such as MP3 players can generate levels of sound at the ear in excess of 120 decibels, similar in intensity to a jet engine, especially when used with earphones that insert into the ear canal.

More than 90%  of teenagers from Europe and the United States surveyed use the newfangled  contraptions. Overall, their use "has grown faster than our ability to assess their potential health consequences," says Peter Rabinowitz from Yale University School of Medicine.

But, evidence that music players are causing hearing loss in young people is mixed, suggesting that the true population effects may only now be starting to be detectable

Other health effects may also need to be considered. For example, some studies have shown that use of personal music players can interfere with concentration and performance when driving, in a similar way to mobile phones.

Although evidence based guidance is lacking, the importance of hearing loss as a public health problem makes it reasonable to encourage patients of all ages to promote "hearing health" through avoidance of excessive noise exposure.

"Personal music players provide a reminder that our hunger for new technology should be accompanied by equally vigorous efforts to understand and manage the health consequences of changing lifestyles," the editorial concludes.



Peter M Rabinowitz,'Hearing loss and personal music players', BMJ, April 2010, 340:c1261; doi:10.1136/bmj.c1261