WFAA-TV

Custom-fit earbuds are made in various colors.

Apple iPods, MP3 players and Bluetooth devices will be given as gifts to thousands during the holiday season, but hearing loss seems to be the unadvertised side feature to the presents.

However, one accessory could change that.

An innocent iPod can easily pump out 120 deafening decibels; and a Bluetooth headset can crank out 100 decibels. The high decibels don't just occur when the user cranks up the volume, it also depends on how the earpieces are worn.

"We think we can hear better when we push it deeper and that's just a misconception," said Clayton Blakeney, audiologist.

More than a misconception, Blakeney said positioning the earbud deep inside the canal is dangerous.

Blakeney's clients are no longer the Medicare crowd since the high-tech advancements that appeal to the under 50.

At her parents' request, Jane Gilmore, 14, went to Blakeney's office to get her ears tested.

"They didn't want me going deaf before I was supposed to," she said.

Gilmore's parents aren't the only ones fearful of hear loss.

Apple was sued after claims the earphones caused permanent hearing loss. In October, a lawsuit filed in Chicago against Motorola claimed a Bluetooth cell phone headset does the same thing.

"They'll come in and claim of ringing in the ears," Blakeney said.

But Blakeney said one gadget can make listening safer.

"We can protect their hearing with custom-made ear molds," he said.

Like a fingerprint, the molds made of the inside of user's ears are unique. They are custom-fit earpieces made specifically for each individual.

While wearers may be unaware, ordinary earbuds can be pushed perilously close to the eardrum. The custom ear mold doesn't come close. Like closing a door can shut out sound, a custom earpiece can shut out other noises and make the music or conversation clearer.

"And they think they're getting better volume out of their iPod because it's cutting out background sound," Blakeney said.

Gilmore was afraid her custom earpiece might look like her grandparents' hearing aids, but these days they come in a rainbow of colors.

"I can hear what I'm listening to a lot better," she said of her earpieces. "I don't have to turn my music up as loud."

Custom earpieces cost about $45 each, and nearly any audiologist can help mold and fit one.

E-mail jstjames@wfaa.com