Gamblers are at risk of hearing loss and tinnitus through gaming

People who play video games are at increased risk of hearing loss and tinnitus, according to a recent study on gaming. Backgrounds.

Anyone who gambles frequently runs the risk of damaging their hearing. At least this is the current result Stady From the United States of America. Research indicates that gamers exceed safe volume levels for long periods of time. This can lead to irreversible hearing loss and tinnitus.

Gaming: Hearing loss and tinnitus due to gaming

So far, research seems to know little about whether video games can be a risk factor for hearing loss or tinnitus. That is why researchers from different universities in the USA and China, in cooperation with the World Health Organization, summarized and examined the current findings on this topic.

To do this, they used 14 studies involving more than 50,000 people. Conclusion of the study: Gamers can reduce the volume during gameplay to reduce risks. However, part of the problem is the length of time they are exposed to high sound levels.

Noise levels in video games are often higher than WHO recommendations

According to the World Health Organization, adults can consume a volume of 80 decibels (dB) for up to 40 hours per week. This roughly corresponds to the doorbell's noise level. Anything higher than this value reduces the permissible noise pollution significantly.

The WHO recommendation for adults is: four hours per week at 90 dB and one hour and 15 minutes per week at 95 dB. For children, the limits are even lower.

However, as the study data shows, the average headphone noise level from shooter games ranges between 88.5 and 91.2 dB. Short bursts of loud noise, such as gunshots, can reach 119 decibels. According to the researchers, this suggests that video games could be a common source of unsafe noise.

Gaming and hearing loss: Researchers want to conduct more studies

Researchers and the World Health Organization call for more public health efforts. They want to raise awareness of the problem faced by video gamers, just as is already happening with live music and general use of headphones.

That's why they want to conduct more research to prove the relationship between gaming and hearing loss. In the future, the influences of eSports, geographic region, gender and age will also be focused on.

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