Parents, do your kids have a pair of child-size headphones that the box said were, quote, “safe for young ears”? Don’t believe it. Because the consumer-product review site, Wirecutter, did a little investigating. They analyzed 30 different children’s headphone brands, and found that half of them did not restrict decibel levels as advertised. And the  worst ones allowed volume so loud it could permanently damage a child’s hearing – or even an adult’s – within minutes! For reference, the noise of a lawnmower is 100 decibels – and can damage hearing after 15 minutes. And the government mandated safe limit in the workplace for adults is 85 decibels – which is like the noise an idling bulldozer makes.

Well, these child-friendly headphones allow the volume to reach 114 decibels – WAY over the safe limit. If you want to see if your child’s headphones are safe – go to TheWirecutter.com for their list “Best Kids Headphones.” And make sure kids never listen to anything higher than 60% of the max volume – and to give their ears a break at least every hour.

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