Hollywood Popular Artists

May 4th 2012, 13:00

In an interview with the Daily Mirror, Coldplay frontman Chris Martin reveals that he's been suffering from the ear condition tinnitus for around 10 years.

The condition, which is defined by the perception of sound within the ear in the absence of corresponding external sound, often an intense buzzing or ringing, can cause severe earaches and headaches and can result in permanent deafness if it goes untreated. It is not uncommon in musicians or people who spend large quantities of time in loud environments.

"I wish I'd thought about it earlier. Now we always use moulded filter plugs, or in-ear monitors, to try and protect our ears," Martin told the Mirror. "You can use industrial headphones, but that looks strange at a party."

Though Martin is now trying to protect himself from further ear damage and the condition has stabilized, the damage already done appears to be irreversible.

"I've had tinnitus for about 10 years, but since I started protecting my ears it hasn't got any worse," he continued. "Looking after your ears is unfortunately something you don't think about until there's a problem. I wish I'd thought about it earlier."

The reason Martin is coming forward now is because he is backing the Action On Hearing Loss campaign, which warns of the potential danger of listening to overly loud music.

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