Sep 19, 2007 4:04 pm US/Eastern
Study: Extended Cell Phone Use Causes Hearing Loss
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MIAMI (CBS4) ―
A new study is giving a whole new meaning to the term "can you hear me now."
Researchers say too much talking on a cell phone may lead to some minor hearing damage, but not all experts agree.
Cell phones allow us to talk anytime, anywhere and for business travelers, it's an essential tool that's used all the time.
But according to a new study, long-term use of a cell phone may cause inner ear damage and can lead to high frequency hearing loss.
According to research presented at an American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery Foundation meeting; 100 people who had used mobile phones for over a year suffered increases in the degree of hearing loss over the span of 12 months.
The study also discovered that people who used their phones for more than 60 minutes a day had a worse hearing threshold than those with less use.
Scientists speculate that electromagnetic waves from cell phones may be to blame, but some experts say this study is far from proof that cell phones do any damage.
The authors warn users of cell phones to look out for ear symptoms such as ear warmth, ear fullness, and ringing in the ears (tinnitus) as early warning signs that you may have an auditory abnormality. They also suggest the use of earphones, which they found to be safer than holding a mobile phone up to the ears
Beth Israel Medical Center's top hearing specialist says the findings are not significant enough to warrant worry. "There's no reason for anyone to worry that a cell phone is going to cause you to lose your hearing, there's no evidence of that," according to Dr. Ronald Hoffman.
Dr. Hoffman has problems with how the study was compiled and points out that cell phones have been safely used by millions of people for years. "With that type of usage we would know if there was a hearing problem," said Hoffman.
Cell phone health concerns have been questioned before. Early research suggested they may cause brain tumors, and then bigger studies proved that wasn't the case.
So in this case we'll have to wait for future studies to see if there's a real concern we should listen to.
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