Thank God this "iPod is destroying our kids' hearing frenzy" has been resolved in a U.S. Appeal Court. Two plaintiffs filed I believe a frivolous class action suit against Apple because the device could reach up to 115 decibels. If listened to for 15 minutes this could cause permanent hearing loss damage and would be the equivalent volume of a baby's cry or attending a stadium football game. (See our noise thermometer on this website).

The U.S. judge ruled that Apple is not responsible for hearing loss caused by music played too loud on iPods. The San Francisco appeal court upheld a 2008 ruling, as the company warns users of the dangers of playing music too loud. I recently purchased earbuds for my iPod and found a very responsible and educational piece on safe listening habits in the box. Logically, the court also reasoned that iPod users had the option to choose how loud they raise the volume. Who is responsible for our reckless behavior?

MP3 players have been around now for 20 years. People attend rock concerts and hunters shoot guns without proper ear protection with a much greater risk of hearing loss damage. What is the solution to self-inflicted hearing loss due to recreational noise? To sue every manufacturer, who has a product delivering sound at greater than 85 dB? I think not. The solution is continued education on hearing loss prevention.

For more information on hearing loss prevention visit the BHI website.