Should you wear earplugs to concerts?
Or before going to a club?
When you’re enjoying music live at your favorite artist’s concert the last thing you probably want to think about is health precautions. You want to take in the experience at its fullest. And that includes the loud volume and the lack of uncomfortable protective gear.
Most likely, your smartphone reminds you of the dangers of loud music every day. It sends you a warning message before you turn the volume up to the maximum while you’re wearing headphones. And, also most likely, you click it off and ignore it without a second thought. Should you treat loud music with the same attitude in live concerts as well?
The Canadian health website healthlinkbc.ca notes that “in general, sounds above 85 dB are harmful, depending on how long and how often you are exposed to them and whether you wear hearing protection, such as earplugs or earmuffs”.
They also provide a chart for reference. That chart puts the volume of normal human conversation at 60dB, the same level as background music. Meanwhile, “sports crowd, rock concert and loud symphony” weigh in at more than double that, 120-129 dB. That is also way above 85 dB, which the site noted as dangerous to human ears.
So does that mean that the case is settled? Should everyone go to concerts with earplugs in? Will all those who don’t go deaf at some point?
A 2012 article by the British newspaper The Guardian writes that the most common cause of hearing loss is noise damage. They too cite the 85 dB threshold, but specify that for permanent damage, you’d have to listen to that volume eight hours a day. A rock concert's 120 dB, however, can hurt your ears just after two minutes.
Ear pain is common even after attending a loud concert but it tends to subside shortly after the event ended.
The lead singer for the legendary Australian rock band AC/DC, Brian Jonhson, had to quit touring for that very reason. His doctors warned him that if he doesn’t quit he’s likely to have a complete loss of hearing. Thus in 2016, AC/DC was forced to replace their lead singer with Axl Rose.
So what should you do?
First off, please note that by attending one single loud rock concert, you’re very unlikely to sustain real damage to your hearing organs. If you’re sensitive to high volumes of music, but for some reason you need to go to a rock concert anyways, you’re advised to stand far from the speakers.
And yes, if you’re still bothered, earplugs can work. It may be counterintuitive to plug up your ears before going to hear an artist you like. However, it still might be necessary sometimes. You’re advised to take them with you to the venue. If the music gets unbearable, don’t hesitate to put them in.
Please note, however, that persistent loud music is what really does the harm. Going to one or two concerts in a year cannot be considered much of a hazard to a healthy adult. However, if you go to a club or a live music performance with blaring speakers every week, and you also have your headphones on all the time at max volume, you should be very aware of the effects on your body.
