Audiologists fear: Noise-canceling headphones could damage hearing

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They are a common sight on bus and train commutes and in offices: headphones are an effective antidote to block out annoying background noise. For some years now, headphones with active noise-canceling headsets have been particularly popular. Some audiologists, i.e. scientists who study hearing, are increasingly concerned that excessive use could impair hearing, according to the British news portal "The Guardian". One indication of this could be that adults are increasingly experiencing difficulties in locating sounds and understanding conversations, even though conventional hearing tests do not show any problems. Scientists have collected studies on this over time, but they have not yet provided any clarity.

Auditory processing disorder (APD) as the cause

The fact that people are unable to process acoustic information correctly has been known since at least 2006, when a study by D. Moore appeared in the Audiology Journal explaining this clinical picture, which is still controversial among audiologists. In auditory processing disorder (APD), also known as auditory processing and perception disorder (AVWS), the hearing functions normally, but the brain has difficulty processing the acoustic information it receives correctly. Those affected often have problems understanding speech in noisy environments, following instructions or processing fast and unclear speech. This has a similar negative impact as organically induced hearing loss, namely through increased isolation and stress, as many tend to camouflage and mask their impaired hearing.

Historically, APD has tended to be diagnosed in children, but only recently has there been an increase in adults. The audiologists suspect that this could be due to the fact that more and more people are using headphones with active noise reduction, even over long periods of time.

The scientists' attempt to explain this is that by filtering out background noise over long periods of time, the brain only has a single source to process, such as music or a podcast. In children, this could mean that they are no longer able to concentrate in such a way that they can ignore background noise without external filtering. In adults, the ability to filter out background noise is atrophied. This means that even minor acoustic disturbances are enough to make it impossible to follow dialog or understand important announcements on the train, for example.

Evidence: yes, proof: no

So far, however, the attempts to explain this have remained in the realm of vaguely supported speculation. This is because there is no valid scientific evidence that noise-canceling headphones cause APD. Harvey Dillon, Professor of Hearing Sciences in Manchester, says: "I am not aware of any study that has investigated a link between the use of noise-canceling headphones and reduced auditory processing ability." At best, studies speak of a prevalence of 5 to 10 percent in adults, but without offering clear findings for the causes.

Even the case numbers cannot yet provide evidence of an increase in the disease, simply due to a lack of robust data. Nevertheless, audiologists see a need to investigate the effects of prolonged use of headphones with noise reduction. So far, studies that list the positive properties of this class of devices have dominated. For example, that they make it possible to listen to music and other sounds at a lower volume than without insulation. This prevents organic hearing damage in the long term. In addition, filtering can also minimize sensory stimuli, especially in people who are very sensitive to stimuli, i.e. when the brain already has a disorder that cannot be remedied in any other way to filter out what is important from an abundance of sounds.

Keep calm

Overall, there are hypotheses, but no evidence. As long as this is the case, you would probably be well advised to have your hearing checked regularly, over and above pure sensitivity measurements at different frequencies. If you don't want to isolate yourself acoustically, you can also use headphones with bone conduction, which often don't offer as good a sound as conventional headphones, but are well suited for podcasts, for example.

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