Apple’s Hearing Research: Quarter of Participants Have Problems
The first findings of one and a half years of hearing research conducted by Apple have been published. They kicked off with Heart and Women’s Health Research in the fall of 2019. To publish the data obtained, the same Apple Research application was used, which allowed the research to be carried out.
The results are not encouraging. It turned out that despite the seemingly pandemic lull, about 25% of participants experience daily excess of the sound pressure level recommended by the WHO. This loud noise is generated by machinery, traffic, public transport, etc.
Almost half of the respondents work or have worked in noisy places. Headphones sound louder at least once a week than is permissible according to WHO recommendations for every tenth participant. Also, one in ten doctors diagnosed with hearing loss, and 75% do not use a hearing aid or cochlear implant.
The study also showed that according to the WHO criteria, 20% of the subjects suffer from hearing loss. A quarter of all people hear ringing in their ears at least once a week. Harsh acoustics can seriously impair hearing – to control noise levels, Apple recommended using, for example, the Noise app available on Apple Watch.
