You won’t find them for sale in most stores. Sales staff at your local retail outlet won’t
know what you are talking about. Still,
there really are some safer alternatives when it comes to kids’ headphones and
sound products. Consider this; one in five kids will have some degree of noise
induced hearing loss by the time they are teens. MP3 players, loud videogames, and other noisy
entertainments are all culprits.
What features should you look for when buying kids’
headphones?
·
Don’t let appearances fool you. Just because a product is being marketed to
kids doesn’t mean it is safe for kids. One
national chain with several Denver retail outlets targets teen and preteen
girls exclusively. They sell headphones
that don’t stint on the rhinestones but lack safety features. One of the most popular brands of teen
headphones boasts model names like Crusher and Slayer and that’s what they do
to young ears without the proper education.
·
At the very least, headphones should be noise
cancelling. One reason kids turn the
volume up is to drown out environmental noise around them. If you must buy over
the counter headsets, “ear can” style headphones that fit over the ear are
preferable to earbuds.
·
Even better are decibel-limiting headphones. They have a maximum volume of 85 decibels,
the upper limit of safe listening. Above
85 decibels, permanent hearing loss is possible. The higher the decibels, the less the
exposure time needed for permanent hearing loss to occur. Etymotic, a leader in safe technology, makes the
ETY Kids brand. Kidzsafe by SMS Audio is
another good brand. Vic Firth, has long
been a crusader for hearing conservation.
The company’s founder did a lot of research to create a headphone that
would be safe for his own child to use.
Kidphones by Vic Firth are decibel limiting and also sound pressure
reducing.
·
“Bone phones” are another alternative. Delicate
ear structures conduct sound, of course, but hard, study bone also does a great
job. Luckily, the best bone in your
body, your skull, is handy! These high tech headphones bypass the ear canal
entirely without affecting sound quality.
iHeadbones is compatible with all devices that have an audio jack. If you
order online use the event code “DOUGLAS” for free shipping.
Ordering information:
iHeadbones--order online http://iheadbones.com/products.html(use code DOUGLAS for free shipping)
phone: 888-866-0807
Vic Firth—order online http://www.vicfirth.com/products/headphones.php
phone: 617-364-6869
Etymotic—order online http://www.etymotic.com phone:
1-888-etymotic
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