Are bone conduction headphones good for runners? – 07/03/2023 – On the Run

The numbers are alarming. A study released at the end of last year by researchers at the Medical University of South Carolina (USA) points out that up to 1.35 billion people between 12 and 34 years old may have hearing loss due to the inappropriate use of headphones or exposure to noise. for prolonged periods, mainly in ballads and concerts.

The survey, published by the scientific journal BMJ Global Health, crosses the results obtained by 33 other studies done on the impact of noise on hearing loss among young people to arrive at the estimate.

The study considers excessive noise exposure to be listening to music at more than 80 decibels for 40 hours a week or more. To give you an idea, 80 decibels correspond to the noise of a hair dryer or a busy street.

Why talk about it on a running blog? Go to any park and look at the athletes. After tennis, probably the most popular accessory among runners is headphones.

Running is a repetitive, tedious activity, which works well as a distraction in moments of low intensity, and which benefits from an ‘extra energy’ in explosive training. I myself have different playlists for regenerative run days, long runs and intervals. Podcast or audiobook for long training sessions, electronic ramming for shooting training.

Just as exaggeration in training can lead the athlete to have muscle injuries, listening to loud music for a prolonged period puts the hearing aid at risk. And with an aggravating factor: hearing losses can be permanent.

bone conduction headphones

The running world is made of fashions. Some passengers, others arrive and stay. It is still too early to say about the future, but the fact is that the number of runners who choose bone conduction headphones is growing day by day.

Unlike traditional headphones, which emit sound waves to the eardrum, and from there they are transformed into vibration up to the cochlea, conduction headphones skip the stage of sound transmission through the air and take vibrations directly to the auditory system.

Marine mammals use the feature to communicate. Legend has it that Beethoven held a baton between his teeth while playing the piano. The vibrations allowed the almost deaf composer to compose some of his best-known works towards the end of his life.

Would bone conduction headphones be a solution to preserve the health of the athlete’s hearing system?

Unfortunately, the answer is no. The damage that this type of device can cause is the same as that observed in traditional headphones.

“Exposure to high volume can damage sensory cells, regardless of whether the sound arrives through the air or through sound vibrations”, explains otorhinolaryngologist and amateur athlete Teresa Higino.

The biggest differential of bone conduction headphones is to allow greater hearing of the ambient sound, since the ears are unobstructed. “This can be especially important for runners and cyclists who train on public roads”, evaluates Teresa.

I tried some bone conduction models. In the first contact, what is noticed is a slight itch at the point of contact of the phone with the skin – caused, of course, by the vibration of the device. The greater the volume, the greater the judder. The sound quality is compatible with most bluetooth headphones used by runners.

I personally did not fall in love, but I recognize that they are good running companions.

Therefore, whether with traditional headphones or with bone conduction headphones, the same rule applies to the music volume that applies to your arrival time in a race: the lower the better.

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