Owing to boys’ higher testosterone levels during puberty, their vocal cords get thicker and longer than girls’, giving rise to their deeper voices. “In males, the vocal cords take longer to vibrate, hence, lowering the frequency of vibrations per second and lowering the pitch,” said Dr Charn.
Male larynxes also grow larger to accommodate the bigger vocal cords, giving rise to the Adam’s apple that you see in men. And get this: Those with a larger Adam’s apple tend to have a deeper voice. Imagine the size of the late James Earl Jones’s larynx.
WHAT’S THE WORST THING YOU CAN DO TO YOUR VOCAL CORDS?
Screaming, yelling, coughing, repeatedly clearing the throat and overusing the voice can cause phonotrauma, which is trauma or physical stress to the delicate vocal cords, said Laura Chua, a senior principal speech therapist at Sengkang General Hospital.
“In the short term, there may be swelling of the vocal folds and mild changes in vocal quality. However, over time, repeated injury can lead to the development of vocal fold lesions or even scarring and more permanent hoarseness,” said Chua.
LOST YOUR VOICE OR SOUND HOARSE? IT COULD BE:
Vocal cord nodules: The most common causes are vocal cord nodules that result from voice overuse, said Dr Charn. “The nodules are sometimes named singers’ or teachers’ nodules as classically, they affect professions that use their voices the most intensively.”
What can happen is, the vocal folds swell and over time, the swollen spots harden like a callous. If the voice abuse continues, the spots can get larger and stiffer, and become nodules. Nodules are solid bumps and are non-cancerous but they can cause your voice to sound weak or hoarse.
