July 11, 2021

Does separated headphones for kids necessary? (with headphones recommendation for kids)

"It's never too early to start protecting your hearing."

During the pandemic, children have no choice but to do remote learning and many kids use headphones or earphones to help focus study. But does headphones safe for our kids?

We know loud noises are bad for the ears. Inside your ears are tiny fibers that help you hear. Over time, loud noises can damage these fibers. Once your hearing is gone, you can't get it back.

If loud noise doesn't bother you as much as it used to, it might be a good idea to get your hearing checked. How about kids? It is recommended to bring kids to check their hearing at least once every 3 years. Look out for the following signs before bringing your kids to check their hearing:¹

Signs in Babies

Does not startle at loud noises.
Does not turn to the source of a sound after 6 months of age.
Does not say single words, such as “dada” or “mama” by 1 year of age.
Turns head when he or she sees you but not if you only call out his or her name. This sometimes is mistaken for not paying attention or just ignoring, but could be the result of a partial or complete hearing loss.
Seems to hear some sounds but not others.

Signs in Children

Speech is delayed.
Speech is not clear.
Does not follow directions. This sometimes is mistaken for not paying attention or just ignoring, but could be the result of a partial or complete hearing loss.
Often says, “Huh?”
Turns the TV volume up too high.

How you can tell a noise is too loud?

If there's so much noise around you that you need to talk extra loud when your friends only a few feet away, it's probably hurting your hearing. But it can be hard to know how loud is too loud when you listening via headphones. Listening to music on headphones, you might hear sounds between 96 - 110 dBA. Listening at 110 dBA via headphones in few minutes can lose some of your hearing.

Sounds at or below 70 A-weighted decibels (dBA), even after long exposure, are unlikely to cause hearing loss. However, long or repeated exposure to sounds at or above 85 dBA can cause hearing loss. The louder the sound, the shorter the amount of time it takes for noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) to happen.²

Here where headphones for kids come in. Some headphones and earbuds advertise that they limit the volume, but they still limit the volume above 70 dBA. this is due to the possibility that the headphones might be used during travel or in busy/noisy areas.

Here are the average decibel ratings of some familiar sounds:

Check out how loud other noises in here.

Here are some headphones for kids that I found acceptable since can be set to different maximum levels of noise depending on the situation. I can't find exactly the maximum of 70 dBA, but the lowest setting is close to it: