MP3 players and iPods are a blast -- literally. All your favorite stuff is available anywhere you go, and as loud as you want it. The sound quality is excellent. And it may be the clear sound that's leading to a desire for higher volume.

Dr. Scott Manthei is an E.N.T. Surgeon with Nevada Eye & Ear. He says in the olden days, the music was coming through speakers and distortion would limit how loud we could play it. As music and acoustics has gotten clearer, we can play it much louder and hear it so much clearer.

Dr. Manthei says many users of the portable sound machines do not realize they may be causing permanent damage to their hearing. Loud and persistent music affects the delicate hair cells deep within the ears. "It's like grass in the ocean that sits on the floor. A gentle over flows over and you save the grass. If it's a tsunami, a large wave, it's going to tear up those hair cells."

Las Vegas resident Laurita Chianese cautions her teenager daughter about the risk of over doing it with an MP3 player. Chianase's own hearing is permanently damaged from her early days as a professional singer.

"How much can you fix an ear? What will that mean for me in the future?" Chianese knows first hand that loud music may seem harmless, but can eventually take a toll on a person's quality of life. She says, "I can't hear certain sounds. I tend to try to watch people's mouths when they talk so I don't miss everything."

Dr. Manthei adds, "These youngsters that are using the iPods and the headsets, they're going to be coming in with damage to their ears at a much earlier age."

Over time, everyone looses hearing to some extent as a natural part of aging. Permanent hearing loss may be mild or severe depending on many factors.

By Paula Francis