World Hearing Day: 3 tips for safer listening

Published 03 March 2022  | Updated 18 December 2022  | 3 mins read

Mar 03, 2022

This World Hearing Day (March 3rd) we’re focusing on easy ways to protect your ears and safeguard your hearing for the future. While the risk of hearing loss might increase as you get older, you can never be too young to start taking care of your ears.

So here are our 3 quick hearing protection tips.

1. Turn the volume down

Do you regularly listen to music or podcasts with your earphones? Do you listen at full volume? Well, you might be doing some irreversible damage to your ears. Listening to music at maximum volume can be as loud as 110dB – almost as loud as a plane taking off!

Meanwhile, the safe limit is 85dB – so it’s recommended to turn down your earphones to at least 60% to listen safely, as well as taking a 5-minute break once an hour to give your ears a rest.*

2. Get some earplugs

If we could, we’d normalise the wearing of earplugs – everyone should use them to help protect their hearing. Why? Because modern life is very noisy.

If you regularly attend loud music events like clubs or festivals, it’s a good idea to invest in some earplugs to avoid damaging your ears. These will ensure you can still listen to your favourite band with full clarity but at a volume that’s safer for your ears.

They’re also much more comfortable than traditional foam earplugs! We recommend the affordable and reusable ACS earplugs. If you are looking for the best level of sound protection we also recommend custom made earplugs.

3. Stop using cotton buds!

By now, we all should know that using cotton buds or other small objects to clean our ears is a big no-no. It might seem like they’re doing a good job, but cotton buds risk damaging the ear canal, compacting (not removing) earwax and even causing infection. So this is your reminder to stop!

Ears will naturally get rid of dirt and wax. But if you experience an unusual amount of build-up, it’s important to have it removed professionally – don’t use cotton buds. Instead, book an appointment with THCP for the latest and safest earwax removal technologies.

Book a free hearing test

1 in 6 of us suffers from hearing loss in the UK – that’s upwards of 11 million people. So if you think you might need a hearing test, you’re by no means alone – even if you’re still young! The good news is that at The Hearing Care Partnership we offer a free ear exam and complete hearing health check, so you can stay ahead of any potential problems.

Book in to see one of our friendly audiologists today by calling 0800 52 00 546 or visiting our website.