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American Eardrums Under Attack

by Tim Stevens on April 26, 2007 at 05:24 PM

With Sanjaya Malakar no longer the force he once was, it seems the tender eardrums of America's youth are once again safe from unnecessary harm. But sadly, that's not the case, reports NPR.

Today's 'Morning Edition' broadcast spotlighted Dr. Sharon Kujawa of the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary and her crusade across Boston's school system to inform young people about the dangers of listening to music too loud.

A study by the CDC estimates that 12.5 percent of American kids between six and 19 years-old show signs of noise-induced hearing loss. That's more than five million nationwide. However, what's particularly alarming is the fact that the study is from 2001 -- years before iPods and other digital media players were as commonplace as they are in 2007.

But, kids are a tough audience to win over. So, to help her get the message across, Kujawa travels with Ben Jackson, a twenty-something kid who gets up and actually raps a song about hearing loss. His song is called "Turn it to the left," and encourages youngsters to turn their volume dials down (and to the left). According to NPR, the kiddies go nuts for it.

Jackson's diddy goes a little something like this:

"The number one risk around,

Is when the volume goes up when it should go down,

So be aware of the sounds that you're listenin' to,

And when it gets too loud, you know what to do:

Turn it to the left, turn, turn it to the left..."

Admit it. You're dying to listen for yourself (halfway down the page).

From NPR

Tags: aac, Earbuds, ears, hearing, hearing loss, HearingLoss, iPod, itunes, mp3

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