The health risks of loud music are greatly underestimated, especially by young people. Physical damage can occur in the long term. If you are aware of the risks of extreme loudness, you can protect your valuable hearing.

Hearing damage is caused by frequently listening to extremely loud music or loud electric tools such as sledgehammers or drills. Working in a noisy environment can also have a negative impact on hearing. Repeated noise is not always necessary to cause hearing damage. A single shot from a firearm or an explosion can cause immediate deafness. So far, there is no evidence that the hearing can recover once it has been damaged. Statistically, it is mainly men who suffer hearing damage.

The more often you are exposed to loud music or other loud noises, the more the ear gets used to the volume level and becomes less sensitive to noise. The stereo system has to be turned up more and more to achieve the same perceived volume. 

Inside the ear canal there are hair cells that pick up sounds and convert them into waves and impulses that the brain can interpret. Constant exposure to loud music destroys the hair cells, which can permanently damage hearing. In the long term, it is not only the sense of hearing that is damaged, but also the brain's ability to interpret speech. High sound frequencies are more damaging than low ones.

To protect your hearing, hearing protection should always be worn when working with loud machines. People who like going to discos or clubs can protect their ears by wearing earplugs, which do not restrict their enjoyment of the music in any way, as the bass can be felt through the body and only high frequencies are reduced in intensity.