All Narfed Up photography and words by Bryan Villarin

The TV was on, and ABC 7 news preview came up for 11am, talking about how headsets and earbuds might aid in hearing loss. Quickly I did a search and found an article from the Dayton Daily News, “Hearing loss sped by use of headsets.”

One sign that you’ve done damage to your ears is when you leave a loud venue with ringing ears.

Fortunately for me, I’ve been wearing Hearos noise reduction earplugs to prevent that when I’ve been going to concerts. My solution for this: get a bulk pack of earplugs from Guitar Center (or a similar store). I have a carrying case, so I don’t just use them once and throw ‘em away.

How much is too much? Audiologist Deanna Meinke provided a good rule of thumb: Listening to a portable music player with headphones at 60 percent volume for an hour a day is relatively safe.

Nope, not too many people will fall under this category if they have a personal music device. I highly recommend getting sound isolating earphones, such as the Shure E2c Earphones. I listen to music at a way lower volume because the outside noise doesn’t get mixed into the music. I listen to my iPod longer than that, that’s for sure.

I’m happy to say my hearing is still good, but that’s only because I’m taking some precautions. I know some friends that have sub-par hearing. I hope they don’t continue to worsen their hearing.