Most people know about general hearing loss, but not as many people know about the dangers of tinnitus. Here's basically what it is (written by Dave, who has tinnitus):
Tinnitus is a subjective "ringing" sound in one or both ears. The ringing can be barely perceptable, to extremely loud, depending on the degree of damage. Many times it consists of multiple sounds. Often, the ringing is modulated. It is constant and permanent and it usually becomes louder over time. Once the ears have been damaged, they become more susceptable to further damage. Many people with advanced tinnitus suffer a great deal. The main cause of tinnitus is exposure to excessive sound levels. Tinnitus can be prevented by wearing effective foam earplugs before and during all loud sound exposures.There is nothing wrong with protecting your ears. You don't have to be able to withstand the 130db thrown at you in concerts, or even the 100db for that matter. It often improves the quality of the music as well, vocals can actually be heard. So if you want to have your hearing later on in life, and don't want to hear this continuous ringing, go and buy some ear plugs before going to a live show.
