According to a recent study that was published in BMJ Public Health, people who play video games could be subjecting themselves to harmful sound levels, which increases their risk of developing tinnitus and irreversible hearing loss, the BBC reported.
This review, which includes 14 research with a total of fifty thousand participants, emphasizes the possible risks associated with extended gaming sessions at high volume levels.
The review emphasizes how gamers, who frequently play for longer lengths of time, go over advised safe limits, which may have long-term effects on their hearing health.
Adults can tolerate 80 decibels (dB), or the noise level of a doorbell, for 40 hours a week, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
After this point, safe exposure quickly declines; the WHO recommends only four weekly hours at 85 dB and one hour and fifteen minutes.
The results show that in some shooting games, the average headphone noise levels were between 88.5 and 91.2 dB, while impulsive sounds, such as gunfire, might exceed 119 dB.
Three studies in particular showed that boys played games more regularly, for longer periods of time, and frequently louderly than girls.
The authors urge more research to demonstrate a stronger association between gaming and hearing problems, taking into account variables like e-sports, geographic location, sex, and age, even if previous studies have found correlations between the two. The study raises the possibility that gaming could be a common cause of hazardous listening even in the absence of new data on sound levels.
According to the report, public health campaigns to increase awareness should be similar to those for live music and headphones. The authors stress the need of programs that encourage gamers to listen safely.The trade group for the video game industry, Ukie, promotes headphones usage at reasonable volumes but doesn’t address the report directly. The study highlights the significance of giving priority to measures that safeguard the auditory health of players as the gaming industry changes.
