After all these years, it seems we’ve been turning down our music for no good reason at all. New research has found that rather than being damaged by loud music, our ears go into defensive mode, protecting themselves from further sonic blasts.
The whole process is very scientific but according to a report by Nine News our inner ear produces a hormone that’s released in the presense of loud music. The chemical surrounds the receptor effectively blocking it from further shocks.
University of NSW professor Gary Housley says of his findings, “It may explain why we lose our hearing for hours or days after we have been exposed to a rock concert or listen to music at high levels using our personal music players.”
University of Auckland professor and colleague of Housley Peter Thorne explained the importance of the revelation:
“It shows that our ears naturally adapt to their environment, a bit like pupils of the eye which dilate or constrict with light, but over a longer time course.”
The good professors are also quick to add that this research is based on short term exposure, as opposed to chronic exposure which “can cause problems years later. “If we exceed a safe dose of noise, our ears can still be damaged permanently despite this apparent protective mechanism.” So basically loud music is okay, but in moderation.” Thorne adds.
It seems that we simply can’t be trusted to look after our own ears, with personal music devices playing a huge role in recent cases of hearing damage because they deliver higher sound levels than naturally occurred as our hearing sense developed over time.
So the moral of the story is… Listen to loud music, just not too much of it.
