How Long Should You Wear Headphones a Day?

Headphones were once primarily used for professional purposes, and they were rarely seen.

Back in time, If owned a pair of awful headphones to listen to your music, you were the coolest kid on the block.

However, things have changed dramatically in recent years, and headphones are now everywhere.

People use them all the time as they interact with their devices, whether it’s a computer, a phone, or speakers.

Headphones have become a necessary tool in daily life. Some people can’t even imagine their lives without their headphones.

Headphones Becoming a Part of Our Everyday Lives

Indeed, I can’t deny the benefits headphones give.

Headphones, especially in the workplace, help employees concentrate by blocking out outside distractions while ensuring that others aren’t distracted by what they’re listening to.

Or, for obvious reasons, for studio work.

Additionally, some gamers will not begin the game if their headphones do not function, as they want to hear those footsteps or get the most out of their game.

Everything seems fine, and there’s nothing wrong with that, right?

However, everything has a cost.

Are you aware of the risks associated with wearing headphones or earphones?

Excessive usage of headphones can cause hearing loss and other hearing problems. In today’s article, we’ll talk about how long you should wear your headphones to avoid getting ear problems.

Headphones Can Cause Acne and other Skin Problems

Before we move to more serious problems that headphones can cause, I wanted to touch down on cosmetic problems you can get from wearing headphones for too long.

If you have skin problems, I would encourage using earbuds since over ear headphones can cause skin irritation.

If you were to wear headphones after working out, where sweat is clearly present or if you kept them on for a long time and they generated heat and sweat, the moisture collected can enable germs and yeast to multiply.

Furthermore, the rubber and plastic contained in headphones might cause additional skin concerns.

Headsets or In-ear Earbuds?

I’ll cut it short, headsets are better than earbuds.

I am well aware, that I told you to opt for earbuds if you have skin problems since they won’t irritate your skin.

However, when it comes to more significant ear problems, earbuds cause greater damage than their counterparts.

Earbuds automatically boost the volume by roughly 9 dB since they sit right inside your ear and are so close to the ear canal.

Headphones, on the other hand, are worn outside the ears or do not enter the ear canal.

What’s worse, knockoff earbuds from unknown companies tend to generate a lot of distortion and uneven volume, which contributes to your ears being damaged even more.

When is it too loud?

Today, many devices can produce sound up to 120 decibels, which is an enormous quantity of sound.  The type that is produced at concerts, particularly rock concerts.

A human’s hearing ranges from 0 to 140 decibels.

Even though we can hear beyond 140 dB, it is too loud for our ears. That way you welcome the danger of permanently damaging your hearing.

Gunshots, explosives, and even pyrotechnics can reach 140 dB or even higher. Now I’ll leave to your imagination what they can do to your ears.

Experts suggest that the ideal decibel level for minimizing ear damage is between 60 and 85 dB.

More on this, you can ready my blog on how to prevent hearing loss from headphones.

When is it too long?

There is a regulation known as the 60/60 rule.

It’s a rule that those who have had ear problems are familiar with.

The world health organization recommends the 60/60 rule. It simply means you should use your headphones for 60 minutes at 60% volume.

This means you should listen to music, watch a movie, or play a video game at no more than 60% of maximum volume and also make sure to l imit yourself to 60 minutes of listening to music using headphones.

You might be wondering why only 60 or 1 hour is allowed.

Sound levels exceeding 85 dB might cause ear damage if exposed for more than two hours.

Have you ever experienced a buzzing sound following a concert? I’m confident you did.

This happens when your ears are exposed to 120 decibels or greater. It is said that being exposed to sound levels of 110 decibels for five minutes can cause damage.

Yikes, I feel bad for people who work in loud environments (staring at myself).

What are some of the symptoms of hearing loss?

Despite the fact that I am not a doctor and do not want to mislead anyone, I am well aware of some symptoms associated with ear damage.

However, only a professional who does a hearing test and a medical examination can accurately diagnose if you have hearing loss or ear damage.

• Tinnitus is the most prevalent type of ear damage. In your ears, you’ll hear things like ringing, roaring, hissing, or buzzing.
• Muffled noises and the sensation that your ear is clogged are also present.
• Listening to the radio or television at a higher volume than usual.

Sometimes the above are just temporary, but if they occur for a long time, I would strongly suggest for you to visit a doctor.

Final Words, Summary

It was difficult for me to compose this blog because I deal with audio equipment and present in loud environments.

But I want to make everyone aware of the potential harm that headphones might do to their ears.

Ear damage treatment is either doable or impossible. Making our ears are really valuable. We must take special care of them. Please do so.

I hope I explained everything well and didn’t give any misleading information.

Until next time, take care and enjoy.

Further Reading

I’m about to give some useful information about knowing the difference between 3.5 vs 2.5 mm Jack,  40mm vs 50mm drivers, and 44100 Hz vs 48000 Hz difference for better music quality. Give it a look because as the older say “old but gold”. Find out about the lifespan of headphones.

Hardcore gamers, click to see if the well-known brand HD6XX headphones are good for gaming.