How to wear headphones without damaging your ear?

An international study conducted found that 51% of the high school students have experienced hearing damage due to overexposure to loud music and over usage of headphones. Also according to the World Health Organization, 43% of people aged 12-35 suffer from hearing problems. It is no doubt that the risks of hearing problems are amplified by our dependency on headphones and earphones. So here we are with a must-read guide about how you can use your headphones without falling prey to hearing problems.

Avoid using Music Players at more than 60% of the Maximum Volume: Did you know that music players can produce maximum volumes of 100 decibels or more? At such a high decibel, hearing damage can occur within 15 minutes! Maintain the volume of your music or video at 60% of the maximum. Some music players can physically apply this setting too and warn you when you try to exceed unsafe listening levels.
Abstain from using your music player for more than 60 minutes a day: High decibels cause produce hearing damage rather quickly, but decibels above 80 can cause hearing damage in a matter of hours. Give your ears a break from your earphones after 60 minutes of music listening. Your hearing health is worth it.
Invest in noise-cancelling headphones: Noise-cancelling headphones are popular among DJs, sound engineers and they are great during plane rides. These headphones block out environmental sounds, allowing you to hear clear audio, thus reducing your temptation to turn the volume up. Alternatively, you can use regular cushioned headphones. When going to concerts or other places where music is played very loudly, carry some earplugs with you. However, avoid wearing noise-cancelling headphones when you’re out and about. You should always be visually and audibly aware of your surroundings!
Use over the ear headphones: Over the ear, headphone (also known as supra-aural earphones) sit on your ear rather than in them like earbuds and canal phones. These earphones are connected with a band that stretches over your head. Supra-aural earphones don’t send sound vibrations directly into your eardrum. Consistently direct sound vibration can damage your hearing over time.
Don’t use your earphones in loud environments: It’s tempting to turn up the volume on our music players when we are in noisy areas, but this subjects us to dangerous volume levels. Wait until you are out of these areas before listening to music. You’ll hear better without all that sound anyways!
It is also advisable to routinely clean your earphones. Day after day many germs and bacteria get accumulated when we do not clean our earphones and these keep getting inserted in our ears, thus furthering the damage. Follow these tips and you can listen to your music safely and enjoyably wherever you go!