Unsafe audio device use leads to permanent hearing loss, says WHO

We all love sticking our headphones in and listening to our favourite podcast or playlist on our commute home from work. 

Especially if you've had a bad day, it can be tempting to whack the volume right up to drown out the sounds of our fellow commuters and the world at large,..

However, listening to the latest album or podcast episode at a high can seriously damage our hearing. 

Unsafe listening can lead to permanent hearing loss.
Protect your hearing, listen safely.https://t.co/IzgCFFrF47 #SafeListening pic.twitter.com/jxgDeTeToj

— WHO (@WHO) December 28, 2017

We all know that it's important to protect our precious hearing, but the World Health Organisation has cited audio device usage as one of the top causes of acquired hearing loss. 

'Recreational exposure to loud sounds such as that from use of personal audio devices at high volumes and for prolonged periods of time and regular attendance at concerts, nightclubs, bars and sporting events' is on the list of causes for hearing loss at all ages. 

Deafness can be permanent, and we probably all know that freaky feeling of being temporarily hearing impaired after an unsafely loud gig.

Education on the risks in essential, according to WHO, so here's your PSA.

Use personal protective devices such as earplugs and noise-cancelling earphones and headphones to reduce exposure.

Or, simply ensure that you keep your volume scale at the halfway mark at all time – even if that fellow commuter is having an obnoxiously loud phone call right beside you.