耳塞式耳機會損害孩子的聽力嗎？

About 20% of children have permanent hearing loss caused mostly by exposure to loud noise， according to the Hearing Health Foundation. Still， “listening to music with earbuds is not a major cause of hearing loss，” says Dr Robert Dobie， a clinical professor of otolaryngology at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. Instead， other common exposures to loud noise are much more likely to hurt childrens ears， he says. “A lot more kids lose hearing from recreational shooting or hunting than from loud music，” Dobie says. Thats not to say earbuds are always safe. Playing music loudly—especially to block out background noise—can damage hearing. If children hear ringing in their ears when they pull out their buds， or if the world sounds a little muffled， thats a sure sign they need to turn down the volume. But as long as the buds stay at a reasonable volume， Dobie says， “theres not much evidence that they offer any unique risks.”

聽力健康基金會的數據顯示，約有20%的兒童存在永久性聽力喪失的問題，而這主要是因為暴露在噪音環境下引起的。盡管如此，“戴著耳機聽音樂并不是聽力喪失的主要原因。”圣安東尼奧得克薩斯大學健康科學中心耳鼻喉科的臨床教授羅伯特·多比說。相反，他說其他常見的噪音更容易傷害孩子的耳朵。“因為娛樂射擊或打獵喪失聽力的孩子比因為大聲聽音樂喪失聽力的孩子要多得多。”多比說道。但這并不是說耳機就百分百安全了。大聲播放音樂——尤其是為了屏蔽環境噪音——會損害聽力。如果孩子在取下耳機后出現耳鳴的情況，或覺得周圍環境的聲音聽著有些模糊，就是明確的信號，表明需要調低音量了。但只要保持耳機的音量在合理的范圍，“沒有多少證據表明這樣會帶來任何特別嚴重的風險。”多比表示。

Word Study

permanent /'p??rm?n?nt/ adj.永久的;永恒的

clinical /'kl?n?kl/ adj. 臨床的;冷淡的

recreational /'rekri'e???nl/ adj.娛樂的;消遣的

The town and its environments are inviting， with recreational attractions and art museums.

muffled /'m?fl/ adj.模糊不清的;沉悶的