Music to Our Ears
by Roberta Lee, MD (topic expert: health) Music and sound abounds during the holiday season as Jingle Bells and Silent Night wafts through stores and office lobbies. While these songs operate more as background noise to accompany us during our shopping, it's not likely that many shoppers will hear it as they are plugged into the ubiquitous iPod and MP3 players. The question is what does all this noise and music do to our hearing? How We Hear Hearing is created by a series of events that change sound waves generated from the air into electrical signals. These signals are carried via the auditory nerve to the brain. The sound waves travel thru the ear canal to our eardrum. Our eardrum transmits the sound via three tiny bones to the middle ear and then onto a fluid filled organ called the cochlea. The fluid within the cochlea ripples when sound occurs. Small hair cells within the cochlea move according to the pitch, or sound, generated. Then signals are created and sent to the brain. These signals are interpreted as sound. When we hear a loud sound it can cause damage, but it must be over a certain number of units. These units are measured in decibels. For instance, a humming refrigerator is 45 decibels, normal conversation is 60 decibels and firecrackers are 120-150 decibels. Damage to your hearing can occur when sounds are over 85 decibels and continue for a long period of time. No more that 15 minutes of exposure to 100 decibels (sounds from a snowmobile), or no more than one minute at 110 decibels (rock concert, chain saw) is recommended to prevent damage to your hearing (1). With the boom of MP3 sales to approximately 38 million players shipped in 2005 the phenomenon of "iPod ear" is emerging. Peak volumes in iPods can approach close to 115 decibels (sound level of a jackhammer or chain saw)(2) . A good rule of thumb for protecting your hearing with the use of earphones is--if you have to remove the headphones to hear people talking to you, it is too loud. If you do find yourself standing too close to the four-story tall speakers at a rock concert with your teenager daughter, or listening to your iPod too loudly, you may experience some temporary hearing loss. Temporary hearing loss is regained by 16-48 hours after exposure. Here are a few signs to look for: - Difficulty hearing over the telephone
- Trouble following conversations with two or more people
- Complaints from others that the TV is too loud when you're watching it
- Straining to hear conversations
- Trouble hearing in a noisy background
- Perceiving that the majority of people are mumbling
- Misunderstanding what people are saying to you
There could be a window of opportunity for salvaging hearing loss in the acute period following exposure to a loud noise. Animal trials that administered either Vitamin E or salicylate ( aspirin) for as long as three days seemed to improve or prevent hearing loss from exposure to loud noises. Despite all the negatives of listening to music too loudly, sounds can also heal. The effects of music therapy on natural killer cells (NK) in a non-controlled study were conducted at the Nagoya City Koseiin Geriatric Hospital. Cell count and activity were studied in 19 persons with Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and cerebrovascular diseases. The subjects were assigned to music therapy and NK cell activity was measured along with cortisol , noradrenaline ,CD4 and CD 8 cells ( other cells which affect immunity) . The resulting effects suggest partial enhancement of immunity, though the study was small in number. Similarly, in patients undergoing surgical procedures such as a breast biopsy, bronchoscopy, prostate biopsy or colonoscopy, faired better in terms of anxiety reduction, blood pressure measurements and respiratory rates when exposed to soothing music (3). Research on the horizon that looks at tailored music for reducing anxiety and sleeping suggests that specific rhythm and tonal patterns can create a meditative state. Individuals suffering from insomnia for over two years were given individually tailored brain music to listen to over a four week period in a study. The results showed a significant reduction from in anxiety and insomnia (4). Thus, as you listen to your music on your iPod, MP3 or in the stores-know that you are following a time honored tradition of music use as a therapeutic intervention to lift your moods- just make sure its under 85 decibels. Happy Holidays ! - www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/hearing/10ways"Ten Ways to Recognize Hearing Loss" accessed 11/17/08.
- http://online.wsj.com/public/article/SB113685799723842312-dZrxb_eZm44vfy74topaLm4evP8_20070110.html"Behind the Music iPODs and Hearing Loss" Wall Street Journal , January 10, 2006. accessed 11/17/06
- Balick M and Lee R. "The Power of Sound: Ethnomedical Traditions and Modern Science" Alt Ther Mar /Apr 2003; 9(2)pp 96-99.
- www.news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/2198316.stm"Personalised 'Brain music' helps sleep." Saturday August 17, 2002.
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