An increasing number of young people are using mind-altering audio tracks known as I-Dosers to relieve stress and "get high." Photo: Li Hao/GT

 

Li Jin (pseudonym) was gripped with a wave of terror when he opened an audio file on the Internet. The track began with a loud scream followed by a fast drumbeat that simulated an accelerated heartbeat, similar to that of someone experiencing a panic attack.

"At the end, a screech came from the headset and then the sound of a man falling to the ground," recounted Li in an article on news portal sohu.com recently.

He was listening to an I-Doser, an audio track that utilizes sounds to alter one's mental state. He once listened to the track for 15 consecutive days. Describing the experience as his "rebellious period," Li said, "I-Dosing," the act of listening to such tracks, both terrified and excited him.

"I used to be friendly and honest. But in those days, I became more selfish and developed a feeling that I was a deity, not an ordinary person," Li said in the article.

"But this terrifying song made me feel joyful. And it made me high." 

Known for their ability to create a transformative experience for their listeners, the tracks have been dubbed "audio drugs" and have found a following among teenagers and young adults across the globe. While taking actual drugs is illegal, both China and Western countries have yet to stipulate any law or regulation banning the spread of I-Doser, a "digital drug," on the Internet.

Statistics from China Central Television news in 2015 showed that up to June of 2015, there were more than 3 million drug addicts registered in China and of those seeking help at rehab centers, 52 percent were under the age of 35. And many wonder if I-Dosers could lead listeners down a slippery slope to addiction.

Falling prey

I-Doser first gained its popularity in South Korea in 2009. Since then its personal computer application has had over a million downloads and its software and tracks have become  popular across the globe. The I-Doser dedicated Facebook page now boasts about 18,770 likes, and there are several other non-official pages dedicated to such tracks on Facebook. Some pages have posts sharing links to tracks that are said to be good for health and even sex.

There are hundreds of videos under the tagline "I-Doser" on Youtube where people of different language backgrounds share their reaction to I-Doser.

While there is no official figure on the number of I-Doser users in China, a search for I-Doser or its equivalent Chinese translation on Chinese search engine baidu.com yields hundreds of results.

Yang Yan, 30, who has been working in the music industry for over a decade, told Metropolitan that she heard her first I-Doser track several years ago at a bar in Sanlitun, Chaoyang district. "It didn't sound good when I first listened to it. But after repeatedly listening to it at the bar, I would start missing it when I was not there." 

After several visits, Yang and her friends later noticed the same youngsters gathering at the bar and indulging in I-Dosers. "[They] appeal to young people, especially those who feel down about their real life."

Yang said the tracks are very emotive and can cause young people with a rich imagination to hallucinate.

Li said, obsessed with the tracks, he would sometimes play the music for a whole night and wake up feeling "intermittent excitement."

"This behavior lasted for about two years. I felt like I would lose breath anytime because the extreme pleasant sensation I got from I-Doser," he said.

Yang thinks the main reason young people are falling prey to I-Doser is that many of them don't have the ability to "cut off" listening when they notice a change in their behavior.

Experts warn that prolonged listening to I-Dosers could cause psychological problems. Photo: Li Hao/GT

 

Binaural beats

Although the tracks initially sounded like noise, Li came to enjoy them and the euphoric feeling they gave him. But, he still wondered how they work. "I don't understand why I-Doser music is in this strange sound format. It did not sound like good music," he said.

The science behind I-Doser is binaural beats. One frequency plays in people's left year while a different frequency plays in the right ear, a report by Seattle Times in 2010 said.

The brain combines the two different sounds to create a new sound which is similar to the original versions that entered each ear. As the two sounds enter the brain through headphones, they give a sensation that forces a change in brainwave activity.

In binaural beats' original development, it aims to be used as a kind of therapy. According to the Seattle Times, back in 2005, binaural beats were used in a study by the University of South Florida in the US on whether the sounds could be used to increase focus in children and young adults who suffer from attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder. The result was inconclusive, said the report.

Song Zhenzhu, a psychiatrist in Qiqihar, Heilongjiang Province, told Metropolitan that audio drugs which use binaural beats are not real music, but just noise which can't be used in music therapy.

"The use of different frequencies in I-Doser affects people's psychological development," she said, adding that she heard several cases where young people developed psychological disorders from listening to I-Dosers.

Is it harmful?

Some Net users listened to the tracks to see how they would affect them and shared their experience in Chinese online forums. While many said they felt uncomfortable with the monotonous tune, many reported becoming addicted to it for mental fulfillment.

The US-based I-Doser website provides software and tracks for download to tablets, cell phones, and personal computers, and includes the disclaimer that users "must be over the age of 18 to use I-doser.com products and services."

"We have an age warning because some of our sequences can cause an altered state of mind," founder of I-Doser Nick Ashton told the Seattle Times. "It is there so they are given respect, as nobody should take their mind, or what it is capable of, for granted."

But there are still some people who claim that I-Doser is useful in improving mental deficits.

Thermite, a Baidu Tieba user, said that it has a magic function. "Before I listened to it, I had tinnitus and my ears rang in silence. But now, after I take off my headset, the ringing disappears."

Meng Qinghua, a psychologist who works at a psychology center in Chongqing, said there is no scientific evidence that I-Doser has any curative effects, but noted that it can be addictive, a 2010 Chongqing Economic Times report said.

He cited an instance where he treated a 19-year-old college student who developed a psychological disorder because of prolonged listening to I-Doser. He said when the student came to him for help, he was extremely anxious and couldn't rest his mind.

Meng said in the report that repeatedly listening to the same monotonous music in a quiet room can put people into state of hypnosis.

"The comfortable feelings people experience are from their own imagination," Meng said.

He said in the long term, listeners will develop a reliance on the sounds and become "addicted" or develop psychological or physical disorders.

Song noted that in reality, lengthy use of I-Doser could negatively affect brain functions. She conceded that listening to such acoustic content could alleviate pressure in the short run but cautioned that they cannot solve people's real psychological problems and could make the underlying problems worse.

"Many young people listen to I-Doser out of curiosity and the need to release pressure. They are more vulnerable because they have low judgment abilities and are not strong-minded as mature grown-ups." 

She said if they are suffering from psychological problems, it's "more useful for them to consult a psychologist."

"They need to [seek] treatment rather than just downloading a 'so-called' audio drug," said Song.  

Global Times - Agencies


Newspaper headline: Getting ‘high’ on audio