Headphones are one of the most common devices for listening to music for your pleasure, long conversations while driving or another activity, for working with sound. The invention is not new, but it has been massively used only in the last few decades. How safe is it for human health uncontrolled their many hours of use? What models should beware and what harm can headphones cause to humans?
Types of Headphones
The progress of technology, which has entered all spheres of human life, has touched leisure. All headphones are designed to finally become immersed in the exciting world of sounds, where and when they like. Miniature loudspeakers can be classified according to the proximity of the speaker to the auditory organ. Each model, of course, has both advantages and disadvantages.
Tablets
Tablets are used by the average owner of a smartphone, since they come with most smart phones. They have a standard shape and are held in the auricle due to their special design, although the anatomical features of the structure of some ears do not allow them to be used at all. But this is rather an individual problem. Due to their small size and poor sound insulation, they are not able to provide good sound. Therefore, young people, being in noisy public places, such as the subway, increase the volume of their headphones. The harm from such actions, leading to exceeding the permissible norms of 90 decibels, is applied stably, every day, which causes temporary hearing loss at first, and then more serious damage.
Of the "advantages" can be noted compactness, low price.
Of all the manufacturers, only Apple stands out, whose engineers managed to squeeze the most out of the capabilities of speakers of this size. They are capable of delivering a fairly wide frequency range of sound in order to enjoy your favorite music. But their price is very different from their analogues, and far from affordable for many.
Vacuum
Vacuum earphones are designed to fit securely in the open ear canal and are equipped with silicone nozzles of different diameters. The device tightly adhering to the walls prevents the penetration of sounds from outside, which guarantees a high concentration of sound. The earbuds shoot sound waves directly at the bullseye - the eardrum, causing irreparable harm to the hearing organs. Headphones of this type, despite the admonitions of specialists, are gaining popularity, because both price and effectiveness are captivating. Audiologists warn that this is the most harmful type of headphones. Their constant operation after 5 years will lead to pathologies of hearing.
In addition, according to statistics, more and more teenagers and adult music lovers in “bugs” become victims of road accidents, because, except for the smash hit and beats, they don’t hear anything, even signals that approach danger.
Of the "advantages" can be noted their hygiene. Nozzles are easy to wash and clean.
Overhead
These are literally superimposed on the ears and attracted to them by means of a fastening located as a rim on the head or around the back of the head. The size of the membrane produces an audible signal quite surround. This makes them a little better than "inserts", but not so much engineers work on them for the sake of sound quality, as marketing specialists to create a fashionable design. After all, this is a mast have for young music lovers and gamers.
Suitable for listening to music on the player, from a tablet, computer and gamers.
Monitoring
These headphones are fully enclosed, partially enclosed and open. Completely enclosed grabs the entire ear, fitting snugly. Sound engineers and music professionals just need complete isolation from extraneous noise for better concentration at work.
It is believed that this type of device is the most sparing, since the sound wave, repeatedly reflected, bypasses the target. There is minimal impact on the membrane tissue - in contrast to the "inserts", the monitoring ones do not have such serious harm to the hearing. Open-type headphones are suitable for enjoying your favorite tracks, surfing the Internet, watching videos at home.
The disadvantage is the large size and inconvenience associated with increased sweating in the area of contact with the device.
Wireless
According to the method of transmitting an audio signal, wired and wireless headphones are distinguished . If everything is clear with the wired ones (they transmit sound with high accuracy through the wire), then the wireless ones are connected to the sound source using a radio signal, infrared port or bluetooth channel.
Professional equipment for recording studios, for example, is made only with wires. And their “brothers” without visible attachments attract mobility, but the sound quality leaves much to be desired. And you can’t get far from the base - the range of action is small, it varies depending on the model.
Bluetooth headset
Increasingly, you can watch as passers-by scurrying around the streets, chatting lively under their breath. Talented inventors provided everyone with an outlandish thing that would allow you to carelessly listen to music, talk, listen to messages without confusing wires, it was even possible to forget about the way to press the phone with your shoulder, risking to drop it every time. The bluetooth headphones are equipped with a microphone. They can be of several types: on both ears for listening to stereo and a mono earphone for negotiations. Solid benefits!
But now everyone knows about the harmful effects of radiation coming from cell phones. So, maybe the harm from wireless headphones is also not fiction?
The effect of bluetooth radiation
According to numerous research data, facts are known that prove that the radiation power of the bluetooth signal is so scanty that it can not harm the human body. For example, the radio waves used for data transmission belong to a special range, which is characterized by small amplitude, speed and energy consumption, which cannot somehow affect the well-being of the user. The radiation power of the headset is equal to 0.0025 W, and the power of the smartphone reaches 2 watts. Such a huge difference in numbers allows you to breathe out with relief and continue to use the gadget, relying on scientifically proven data.
But the reviews of people who used the headset for almost days on end are full of complaints of headaches, ulcers of incomprehensible genesis and hair loss on the side where the engineering product was attached, an irritable state. In response to such unflattering and frightening reviews, experts explain that perhaps some of the problems are associated with the assumption of hygiene disorders (accumulation of pathogenic microbes on the headset), and partly with the influence of sounds exceeding normal limits on the central nervous system, which, in turn, is not without meaning.
The conclusion is obvious: the harm of bluetooth headphones is directly proportional to the duration of use of the device and compliance with a safe volume level.
The effect of sound on hearing
How does loud music affect a person’s hearing? For many teens, this is truly a mystery.
Numerous experiments, studies and observations conducted by medical and scientific figures have shown that imperceptibly, slowly, but surely worsens hearing acuity, prolonged listening to loud music in headphones. The harm lies in the fact that through these devices the sound hits the finely arranged organ of one of the senses of a person. The complex structure of the organ is adapted to protect against episodic sound attacks. The body itself is able to recover in a short time. But those who have accustomed themselves to hard rock or other compositions that are broadcast at loudness above 100 decibels will certainly encounter the irreversible transformation and death of most membrane cells and hair cells covering the cochlea (organ of the inner ear). The process is irreversible and inevitably entails hearing loss. At first, a person will stop hearing the sounds of low frequencies, hissing and whistling.
Scientists have also proved that headphones are most harmful to health, that they are inserted into the ear and create a vacuum in the ear canal, which creates dangerous pressure there. The sound wave has a powerful effect on the eardrum without encountering obstacles in the form of air.
The constant presence in the ear canal of the in-ear headphones provokes excessive sulfur production, as a result of which traffic jams form, which also affects hearing acuity.
Usually, the onset of natural age-related changes in the functioning of the auditory organs for the worse occurs in 40 years or later. But victims of high decibels have to get to know the problem at an earlier age. Moreover, patients are haunted by various sounds, such as ringing, which significantly impairs the quality of life.
The effect of sound on the central nervous system
The harm to the headphones caused to the central nervous system is scientifically justified. Dizziness, insomnia, headaches, migraines, fatigue, irritability - symptoms of central nervous system damage caused by prolonged exposure to noise of 60-90 decibels. Together with an increase in the volume in the headphones, there is an increase in the blood of such stress hormones as cortisol, adrenaline, which leads to serious physiological pathologies.
Loud high-frequency sounds, such as rock music, cause sound intoxication. Prolonged listening to heavy music causes mental disorders, lethargy and other negative effects on the body. The harm to headphones of any brand, even the most advanced, is colossal if you do not follow basic rules.
Simple rules
- While at home, it is better to take this opportunity and listen to music without headphones.
- When external sounds are amplified for some reason, do not increase the volume in the headphones. It is addictive.
- If people hear what sounds in the headphones, then the sound is too loud. It must be reduced.
- It is better to use overhead models and no more than 5 hours a day, and if you really like the earbuds, then minimize the time of their use up to an hour a day.
- Care must be taken in choosing the right accessory. The manufacturer must be well-known and trustworthy. It must be remembered that for too low a price, an unscrupulous seller most likely offers a fake. You need to make sure the opposite so that the "freebie" does not affect your health - you cannot buy it for any money.
Undoubtedly, there are benefits and harms in using headphones. After all, no one argues with all the advantages of the gadget. But in everything it is necessary to observe a measure.
A person is designed in such a way that if there are no visible injuries and sudden deterioration of well-being, he is inclined to abuse his addictions until it is too late. After all, hearing loss is in the worst case a tragedy, and at best discomfort and exclusion from society.