Personal music players are a concern for the American Speech Language Hearing Association, which met this week in Miami.

"Irresponsible use of some of the correct technology may lead people to prematurely age their ears," said Brian Fligor of Boston Children's Hospital.

The crucial questions: How loud and how long do they listen?

"There is a point where too much noise is irreversible and the reason why its irreversible is the sound actually damages the critical receptor elements of the inner ear," said Dr. Brenda Lonsbury-Martin of Loma Linda University.

A new poll finds a specific ethnic group is at increased risk.

"For me it was interesting to see that Hispanics were more prone to using the headphones a little bit louder, using them for longer periods of time," Mitzi Napoles said.

Carlos Bienes uses a volume lock to keep him from turning his MP3 player up full blast.

"You have to put in a password to get it louder," he explained.

What is the time and volume guideline for enjoying music safely?

"If a person were to set their level at 80 percent of the maximum volume control and limit their listening to 90 minutes a day -- so 80 percent for 90 minutes. That's the cutoff between what's relatively safe and unsafe," said Natalie Fernandez-Roque of Miami Hearing and Speech Center.

ASHA wants manufactures to include safe listening instructions with their devices. The group has also put together a bilingual interactive Web site for parents, teachers and students called www.listentoyourbuds.org

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