Young Ears: Children’s Hearing Protection Matters
October is National Protect Your Hearing Month, and this week we’re turning the spotlight to one of the most important (and often overlooked) topics—children’s hearing protection.
Kids’ ears are extra sensitive. Their auditory systems are still developing and their ear canals are smaller, which makes them more vulnerable to loud noise—from concerts and sporting events to video games, school assemblies, and even noisy classrooms. While short bursts of sound might not seem harmful, repeated or prolonged exposure can have lasting effects on how children hear and process sound.
Whether your child loves music, plays an instrument, or simply enjoys joining you at community events, child-sized hearing protection is key.
Here are a few of our favorite, family-tested brands for headphones, earmuffs, and earplugs:
Puro Sound Labs – This brand is a Wirecutter winner year after year, and for good reason. Their volume-limiting headphones keep sound levels at a safe 85 dB, and there are both wired and Bluetooth options.
Em’s 4 Kids – The lightweight, comfortable earmuffs are sized for both kids and babies! They are also now offering volume-limiting headphones and while we haven’t tried them yet, we are encouraged to see more brands getting into this market for kids.
Alpine Hearing Protection – Like Em’s 4 Kids, Alpine offers great options for comfortable earmuffs for both kids and babies. They also have reusable earplugs for ages 3-12 that bring down noise by 26 dB.
Muted – This may be the winner for fun patterns on earmuffs!
Loop Engaged Kids 2 - These reusable earplugs for ages 6+ are cute and fun and bring down noise by 16 dB, which can be perfect for a social or classroom setting when kids need noise reduction but still need to be able to hear conversation.
Flare Audio Calmer Kids - These earplugs do not provide hearing protection. But we are including them here for those times when kids are feeling sensitive to sound. We often recommend these more “open fit” earplugs for both kids and adults seeking to “take the edge off” - our lead audiologist uses them whenever her kids plays with Lego and makes all those clinking sounds!
Custom concert hearing protection - This is an option for school-aged kids and teens who are around a lot of music and while an investment, the interchangeable filters (for various levels of noise reduction) and custom fit guarantee safety AND good sound.
Teaching kids to protect their hearing now helps ensure a lifetime of clear, confident listening—and it’s never too early to start! Let us know if you’d like guidance on the right fit or to explore custom hearing protection options for your child.