Chris Martin Has Tinnitus

Chris Martin is suffering from tinnitus .

The Coldplay frontman contracted the debilitating condition - a persistent ringing in the ears which also causes severe headaches - over 10 years ago and he has now started wearing earplugs in a bid to protect his hearing from getting worse after doctors warned it could end his career.

He said: ''I've had tinnitus for about 10 years, but since I started protecting my ears it hasn't got any worse - touch wood.

''The band use moulded filter plugs, or in-ear monitors. You can use industrial headphones but they look strange at a party.''

Chris - who insists his children, Apple, seven, and Moses, five, wear ear protectors when they attend his gigs with wife Gwyneth Paltrow - believes the root cause of his condition was listening to loud music as a teenager.

He said: ''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.''

Chris isn't the only famous tinnitus sufferer.

Rapper Plan B has also been stricken by the condition for some time - but initially thought he was just hearing passing trains.

He said: ''At first I thought it was trains rushing by as I live near a railway line. It's caused by years of being subjected to loud music.''

'Cars' hitmaker Gary Numan is no longer able to mix music after damaging his hearing.

He said: ''I didn't look after my ears and I'm in trouble.''

All three stars are backing a new charity campaign, Action On Hearing Loss, which aims to get more people to wear ear defenders at gigs and clubs.