Connect the dots between the following stories:

• Swiss Hearing aid maker Phonak AG reported a 32 percent rise in first-half profit after tax and forecast further strong growth,
• iPod sales zooms past analysts expectation.

You guessed it right – the hearing ad maker’s profit is attributed to the fact that younger people suffer hearing damage owing to the cool new MP3 players that are available in the market.

People are glued to these MP3 players owing to huge hard-drive space, long-life batteries and sleek/sexier interface as compared to the traditional old-school MP3 players.

“Normal conversation registers about 60 decibels, a barking dog up to 70, while the subway is around 85 decibels – all in the safe zone. But the rock band at 120 decibels and your personal stereo system at up to 130 decibels could cause hearing loss if you listen too long.”

The magnitude of deafness problem can be assessed from the fact that approx. 30 million Americans are affected by hearing loss, while 50 million are in the early stage!! [link]

And who benefits the most from the rising decibel?
Most significantly, Hearing aid makers!

Due to the noise exposure, especially among the young, we are witnessing the creation of a hearing loss bubble in years to come,” …The group expects to outpace the market in the second half, as growing demand from an ageing population is joined by an increase in hearing problems among users of MP3 players such as Apple’s iPod. [Phonak's Qtrly statement]

So what’s the right decibel?
According to researchers, a typical person can safely listen to an iPod for 4.6 hours per day at 70 percent volume using stock earphones.

Maybe this time ‘An Apple’s iPod a day doesn’t keep the doctors away?’ It’s rather an invitation!
What do you say?

Links: Deafness research| Phonak’s Qtrly results | MSNBC news

Tags: Apple