Advice from doctor to stop listening to headphones

The vitamin recommendation makes me skeptical.

Though I am not a medical professional.

How about a second opinion?  If you keep the listening level low, how could that harm your hearing?  Again, I know almost nothing about medicine.

Listening to headphones can be dangerous because high volumes can be achieved with great clarity. With speakers. the room quickly becomes very big problem at high volumes if the room is acoustically untreated. Headphones don't have this problem, thus listeninglouder than you intend to is very easy.

My advice would be to by a dBmeter, check the volume (by forming an enclosure with the headphone cup, a CD and the dBmeter in the hole) at which you listen music too, ensure that it doesn't go over 80 dB.

80dB should be a safe listening volume.

Also, try to take a break from listening every now and then and try not to have extended listening periods even at lower volumes. 
 

Quote:

Originally Posted by khaos974 

Listening to headphones can be dangerous because high volumes can be achieved with great clarity. With speakers. the room quickly becomes very big problem at high volumes if the room is acoustically untreated. Headphones don't have this problem, thus listeninglouder than you intend to is very easy.

 

My advice would be to by a dBmeter, check the volume (by forming an enclosure with the headphone cup, a CD and the dBmeter in the hole) at which you listen music too, ensure that it doesn't go over 80 dB.

 

 

this sounds really strange. hearing loss due to high volumes is permanant as far as i am aware, so not listening to headphones for 6 months wouldnt cure that.

as for vitamin tablets, never seen anything related to hearing from vitamins (admitedy i havent specifically looked). would only make sence if your hearing loss was due to deficiency of one or more vitamins (unlikely if you have a decent diet) and again, i have never heard of a condition where vitamin deficiency results in impaired hearing, especially if you have no other symptoms.

all that said, im no doc. ask the doctor exactly what condition you have that vitamin supliments and a lack of high SPL's will cure. if he doesnt give a satisfactory answer, get a second opinion.

also (just the cinic in me) if he sells vitamin supliments, be suspicious. recomending that you take a test with no noteworthy and obvious impairment (assuming here), failing you on that test, and recomending you a product that he sells is dodgy business, but not unheard of.

It sounds like your doctor is a quak, and is peddling vitamins to you, to maybe disguise the fact that you have permanent hearing loss.

I would seek a second opinion, maybe get a referral to a specialist, stop listening to your headphones until then.

Quote:

Originally Posted by niranhopper 

I have just visited my doctor and he suggested that i take up a hearing test. So i took the test and found that my left ear does not read the high frequency quite well. So my doctor strongly recommended that i stop listening to headphones and take some vitamin tablets and my hearing should become normal after 6 months. Just wondering if anyone stopped listening to headphones after taking the advice from a doctor and if their hearing improved? Thanks.

Yes, from both speakers and headphones. Naturally, this is going to vary with people but one needs to allow their inner ear to expand, your ears need rest (generally speaking). Even low to moderate volume over time if constant, can suppress your hearing. Some of it ,most of it or nearly all of it may return but it depends... sometimes losses ain't comin' back.

i like loud!

i think im starting to get sensitive to treble, but still hear it well.

unfortunately, i also have a feeling that i am listening to my headphones louder than i used to...  (to get to a comfortable hearing level).

dubstep girl >>>>> grado girl >>>>> deaf-step girl 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dubstep Girl 

i like loud!

 

i think im starting to get sensitive to treble, but still hear it well.

 

unfortunately, i also have a feeling that i am listening to my headphones louder than i used to...  (to get to a comfortable hearing level).

 

 

dubstep girl >>>>> grado girl >>>>> deaf-step girl 

I pick my spots - Got Sly & The Family Stone @ Woodstock... "Medley Music Lover - Higher" and gotta have it turned up 'cause they turned it out!  They kicked the (edit) out of that performance!!!  Ok, time to turn it down, moderation is key.

Noooooooooo deaf-step....er....Dubstep Girl!!!

My session started just before Midnight. Better call it quits in observance of my ability to sill hear and go to bed after breakfast. Good day all; Dubstep Girl! 

Quote:

Originally Posted by niranhopper 

The doctor told me that the vitamins were for the auditory nerves to strengthen them. he doesnt sell vitamins and i buy it from a different shop :). The longest duration i listen may be an hour. I think he blamed headphones because i had no other issues like working in a loud environment or heriditory hearing problems.

 

Just wondering if hearing improved for anyone after stopping listening to headphones.

Heya,

Probably suggested Vitamin's B & E. Yes, you can lose hearing due to nerve damage. But it's really strange for you to lose it in only a single ear when you're doing the same thing to both ears, suggests that something was already wrong with said ear. Headphones can certainly damage your hearing if you listen to loudly and you won't know it.

I wouldn't stop listening to headphones, I'd simply suggest keeping it moderate on the volumes.

And vitamins don't hurt, even if they end up being expensive urine.

Very best,

Kinda strange for the Doc to think that headphone listening caused hearing loss in only one ear.

I don't know how bad your hearing loss turned out to be, but I think it's quite normal to have a bit of high frequency hearing loss if you've been walking around on this planet for some years.

My left ear only hears up to 15 kHz  for example, while my right ear goes up to 18Khz, which is probably due to lots of telephone use. (I used to work at a callcenter)

You should be fine as long as you keep the volume at normal levels. It's never a bad idea to give your ears a rest, but 3 months is way over the top I think.

I've also read that vitamins can help with hearing damage, especially B12. Research showed that a lot of people with hearing loss also have vitamin B12 deficiency.

Vitamins help.  And a person could have one ear clogged with wax that prevents the hearing in one ear from getting as bad as the other.  Or they could be a DJ with one ear pressed up to blasting headphones and the other free.  Also, people can go deaf in one ear (independent of listening habits) but blasting music at your ears won't help it out so a doctor may suggest that as a measure to protect what little hearing is left.

I'd listen to your doctor until you get a second (or even third) opinion. Perhaps your left ear is just more sensitive and that is an inherent quality to your left ear. 

I'd tread carefully. 

To the other posters, I am not looking for a fight here, but I really find it offensive that people are calling this doctor a quack and whatnot. Throwing around insults at the profession of those who have worked very hard to get where they are and contribute a lot to society is offensive.

Edit: Another thing I wanted to say is that you should really monitor your volumes while you are engaged in physical activity (even walking). The blood that protects your ear drums moves to your limbs when you are engaged in physical activity. This makes your ear drums more vulnerable. So be careful!