KEY POINTS:
iPods and similar personal music devices are compounding noise-induced hearing loss in young New Zealanders.
The Accident Compensation Corporation is spending millions of dollars tackling noise-induced hearing loss as the MP3 generation enters what some are calling an epidemic.
More than 5000 claims were lodged with ACC for
noise-induced hearing loss or deafness in the past year.
ACC programme manager John Wallaart said the majority of those claims were from older workers from the era when hearing protection equipment was not mandatory.
But the worry now was the younger generation's use of music devices with long playtimes.
"There is a concern - we honestly don't know if iPods by themselves are damaging people. There's a strong suspicion that it probably is, particularly for people who listen for very long periods of time.
"But what's probably more concerning is the total noise exposure - iPods plus everything else."
Mr Wallaart said claims numbers are rapidly increasing, and so are the associated costs.
"We're talking $50 million a year - it's a reasonable amount of money.
"It includes audiology costs, cost of hearing aids, people visiting a physician - all the costs associated with trying to compensate people and improve their working lives."
Sargunam Sivaraj, audiology head at Capital and Coast district health board, said hearing loss is a slow and steady process that takes decades before it is noticed.
At a recent hearing expo in Wellington, Massey University students connected a sound level meter to an artificial ear and invited patrons to measure the output of their walkman or iPod headphones.
Mr Sivaraj said the average preferred volume level for most was 100 decibels - well beyond the prescribed level. The recommendation is for no more than 15 minutes of unprotected exposure at that level.
A general rule was that if you cannot hear people a metre away, it was probably too loud.
A National Foundation for the Deaf study released in September showed seven out of 10 people under the age of 30 have signs of permanent hearing loss after listening to loud music.
The foundation's executive manager, Marianne Schumacher, said it was encouraging New Zealanders to look after their ears now, so they can enjoy sound later in life.
"The research confirms our concerns that the MP3 generation is facing a hearing epidemic," she said.
"The most frustrating thing for us is that it is preventable, and the precautions people can take are simple and easy to adopt."
ACC statistics show total costs of noise induced hearing loss to New Zealand exceeds $40 million per year, double the figure from five years ago.
It has had two workplace-based campaigns to tackle the issue this year and plans one more before year end.
It was also spending $1.2 million over three years on research to find out where noise exposure is occurring, who is getting exposure to excessive noise throughout their lives, and how this can be effectively controlled.
