Gibbons, 23, knows that if Dr. Kelly Payne and the other audiologists in the practice perceive the slightest sound emanating from her iPod earphones, they’ll give her an earful — but not to berate her taste in music.

"We’re always on her about making sure her volume isn’t too loud," says Payne, who specializes in fitting patients with hearing aids.

That’s because MP3 players, like iPods, which blast loud music directly into millions of ear drums worldwide, have come under increasing scrutiny as a potential cause of permanent hearing loss.

While hearing loss has always been tied to portable music players such as Sony Walkmans, a surge in the popularity of MP3 players — which can play thousands of tracks for hours at a time — has audiologists like Payne anticipating a sharp increase in rates of hearing loss.

The problem lies in the effect loud music has on ears over time. When listeners expose themselves to high decibel levels, they tend to get used to it, Payne says.

"Getting acclimated to loud noise makes you want to turn the volume up still higher," she says.

Payne adds that most next-generation earphones, which rest in the ear rather than over it like older headphones, can cause more damage to sensitive hairs that detect sound in the inner ear.

"It’s kind of like when you walk over blades of grass over time," she says. "They get trampled down, and eventually they don’t regrow."

Compounding the problem for many portable music listeners is that ear drums are more susceptible to damage during periods of strenuous exercise.

"For folks who are exercising, blood flow goes to our most important organs,” Payne says, to the heart and lungs. “Therefore, the cochlea, which is the inner ear, is deprived of that oxygen-rich blood flow."

So what can you do to protect your hearing?

Payne recommends limiting the amount of time spent listening to portable music players and forcing yourself to keep the volume down.

"It’s gonna be good old self-control," Payne says, cautioning: "If you’re consistently being exposed to loud noises over and over again on a daily basis, it’s going to cause some sort of damage."

Gibbons, a student at Midlands Technical College, wears earplugs to protect herself at concerts and in other loud situations, a trick she says she learned working in an audiologist’s office for the past three years. In addition, Gibbons says, she’s careful not to stand directly in front of speakers.

While she makes sure to keep her iPod turned down at work, Gibbons admits to sometimes cranking the volume up at home.

"It’s just one of those things that you don’t realize until after it’s done," she says.

REAL WORLD

Turn down the music

Anyone who has been stopped at a traffic light beside a car with a booming bass that shakes everything around it has probably wondered how the people inside can hear anything. Loud car stereos, rock concerts, car races and firearms all can contribute to hearing loss in teenagers and adults. But have adults really changed that much from their rocking teenage years? Here’s what a few Midlands residents had to say:

Carin Brazell, 39

"I tell my 14-year-old daughter to turn her music down, and my parents told me to turn my music down. But I didn’t think about it when I was younger and listened to loud music all the time."

Jerry Starling, 35

"I never thought about it when I was younger. I still listen to music loud in the car; my wife makes me turn the volume down."

Elizabeth Starling, 35

"The school nurses of Kershaw County check hearing and educate 11th graders on the dangers of loud music, firearms, car racing and hearing loss. Headphone volume is a big deal. I don’t have problems, but I didn’t listen to loud music."

Jeffrey Hudson, 37

"I have some hearing loss, but it’s from being around artillery in the military. Loud music probably contributed to it. And now, I can’t stand anything to be turned up too loud."

Carter Scott, 28

"A couple of years ago, I started putting in earplugs when I went to concerts. I didn’t do that so much when I was younger."

By Michael LaForgia