Make Listening Safe Workstream

Making listening safe

More than 1 billion young people (12–35 years old) are at risk of hearing loss due to recreational exposure to loud sound.Unsafe listening practices, including exposure to high sound levels from personal audio devices, entertainment venues, and digital environments, are placing a generation at risk of preventable hearing damage. The “Make listening safe” initiative aims to realize a world where people of all ages can enjoy recreational listening without risk to their hearing.Approach The approach of this initiative is to change listening practices and behaviours. WHO aims to achieve this through:Raised awareness about the need for and means of safe listeningImplementation of evidence-based standards that can facilitate behaviour change in target population groupsThe Make Listening Safe mission is performed via three main pillars, developed and carried out in collaboration with all stakeholders in the field.Pillar 1: Creation of Evidence-Based StandardsWHO creates standards that outline safe listening features for a variety of situations where unsafe practices are common. These include:The WHO-ITU Global standard for safe listening devices and systemsThe Global standard for safe listening venues and eventsThe Global standard for safe listening in video gameplay and esportsWHO offers support to its Member States, private sector entities, and civil society in adoption and implementation of these standards.Pillar 2: Increasing AwarenessWHO develops and disseminates evidence-based awareness materials for safe listening. These include:Be he@lthy, be mobile – a handbook on how to implement mSafeListeningmSafeListening message libraries Media brief on safe listeningCommunication materials such as flyers, posters, brochures, infographicPillar 3: Investing in ResearchResearch into safe listening is performed in collaboration with global partners to better understand the current state of affairs, to ensure WHO leverages current best practices around the globe, and to uncover future need of safe listening interventions.Examples of recent research informing the initiative include:Prevalence and global estimates of unsafe listening practices in adolescents and young adults: a systemic review and meta-analysis (Dillard et al., 2022)This systematic review provides global prevalence estimates of unsafe listening practices among young people and supports the estimate that over one billion young individuals may be at risk.Risk of sound-induced hearing loss from exposure to video gaming or esports: a systematic scoping review (Dillard et al., 2024)This systematic review examines emerging evidence on hearing risks associated with video gameplay and esports exposure, helping inform the development of safe listening guidance in digital environments. , More than 1 billion young people (12–35 years old) are at risk of hearing loss due to recreational exposure to loud sound.Unsafe listening practices, including exposure to high sound levels from personal audio devices, entertainment venues, and digital environments, are placing a generation at risk of preventable hearing damage. The “Make listening safe” initiative aims to realize a world where people of all ages can enjoy recreational listening without risk to their hearing.Approach The approach of this initiative is to change listening practices and behaviours. WHO aims to achieve this through:Raised awareness about the need for and means of safe listeningImplementation of evidence-based standards that can facilitate behaviour change in target population groupsThe Make Listening Safe mission is performed via three main pillars, developed and carried out in collaboration with all stakeholders in the field.Pillar 1: Creation of Evidence-Based StandardsWHO creates standards that outline safe listening features for a variety of situations where unsafe practices are common. These include:The WHO-ITU Global standard for safe listening devices and systemsThe Global standard for safe listening venues and eventsThe Global standard for safe listening in video gameplay and esportsWHO offers support to its Member States, private sector entities, and civil society in adoption and implementation of these standards.Pillar 2: Increasing AwarenessWHO develops and disseminates evidence-based awareness materials for safe listening. These include:Be he@lthy, be mobile – a handbook on how to implement mSafeListeningmSafeListening message libraries Media brief on safe listeningCommunication materials such as flyers, posters, brochures, infographicPillar 3: Investing in ResearchResearch into safe listening is performed in collaboration with global partners to better understand the current state of affairs, to ensure WHO leverages current best practices around the globe, and to uncover future need of safe listening interventions.Examples of recent research informing the initiative include:Prevalence and global estimates of unsafe listening practices in adolescents and young adults: a systemic review and meta-analysis (Dillard et al., 2022)This systematic review provides global prevalence estimates of unsafe listening practices among young people and supports the estimate that over one billion young individuals may be at risk.Risk of sound-induced hearing loss from exposure to video gaming or esports: a systematic scoping review (Dillard et al., 2024)This systematic review examines emerging evidence on hearing risks associated with video gameplay and esports exposure, helping inform the development of safe listening guidance in digital environments.