New Research Shows Dramatic Increases In Inner Ear Infections And Tinnitus
iPods Can Cause Dramatic Increases In Inner Ear Infections And Tinnitus
Researchers have revealed information that affects hundreds of millions of people around the world. The Ipod from Apple was known to cause major hearing loss and tinnitus from the exposures to the loud noise, but recent research reveals that in addition to this problem is the huge bacterial increase in the inner ears amongst iPod users which is causinf inner ear infections.
“iPOD earpieces are a breeding ground for bacteria and could lead to painful ear infections,” experts said yesterday.
Doctors have long warned that listening to music at high volumes on iPod buds could lead to hearing loss but now they have proved the earpieces are also rife with germs.
A study published in the Online Journal of Health and Allied Sciences has revealed that frequent use of earphones significantly increases bacterial growth in the ear.
Researchers at Manipal university in India also found that bacteria could transfer from one person’s ear to another’s.
Harmful bacteria was found on 92 per cent of ear swabs taken from people who regularly shared their earphones with friends, compared with only eight per cent of those who shared less frequently.
Dr Chiranjay Mukhopadhyay, who led the research, said: “It is better not to share or else to clean the earphones thoroughly before sharing.”
A second study into airplane audio headsets, published in the medical journal Laryngoscope, discovered that, after an hour’s use, the number of bacteria increased from 60 micro-organisms to 650.
Ear infections have been proven to be a major cause of tinnitus according to the tinnitus survey we conducted amongst 1,800 tinnitus patients in September 2008.
