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TEST 9 – Is Technology Harming our Children’s Health?
Technology is moving at such a breakneck speed that it is enough to make your head spin. It can be
difficult to keep up. However, with each new technological marvel come consequences. Much of the
research conducted has shown the extent of the damage being done to our hearth by technology. It is a scary
thought, and with teenagers and children being heavy consumers and users of these gadgets, they run the
risk of being harmed the most.
The digital revolution in music has enabled people to download, store and listen to songs on a tiny
portable device called an MP3 player. The process is quick and afterwards you can have access to a library
of thousands of songs that can fit into your palm. But experts say that continuously listening to loud music
on these small music players can permanently damage hair cells in the inner ear resulting in hearing loss.
For instance, old-fashioned headphones have been replaced with smaller ones that fit neatly into the ear;
instead of over them, which intensifies the sound.
In addition to that, digital music does not distort and keeps
its crystal clear sound even on loud settings which encourages children to crank up the volume. Combine
that with the fact that many children will spend hours listening to their IPods and you have the recipe for
hearing loss.
Put into further perspective, most MP3 players can reach levels of 120 decibels, which is louder than
a chainsaw or lawnmower. When you consider 85 decibels is the maximum safe decibel level set by treating
experts over the course of a working day and that children will listen to music at higher decibel levels than
that for long periods of time, hearing will invariably suffer.
Apart from hearing damage, there are other serious health risks. We are living in a wireless age.
Calls can be made and received on mobiles from anywhere and the internet can be
accessed without the need
for cables. The advantages are enormous bringing ease and convenience to our lives. It is clear that mobiles
and wireless technology are here to stay but are we paying the price for new technology? Studies have
shown that the rapid expansion in the use of wireless technology has brought with it a new form of radiation
called ‘electro-pollution’.
Compared to two generations ago, we are exposed to 100 million times more radiation. The human
body consists of trillions of cells which use faint electromagnetic signals to communicate with each other so
that the necessary biological and physiological changes can happen. It is a delicate, natural balance. But this
balance is being upset by the constant exposure to electromagnetic radiation (EMR) that we face in our daily
lives and it is playing havoc with our bodies. EMR can disrupt and alter the way in which our cells
communicate and this can result in abnormal cell behaviour. Some studies
have shown that exposure to
wireless technology can affect our enzyme production, immune systems, nervous system and even our
moods and behaviour. The most dangerous part of the phone is around the antenna. This area emits
extremely potent radiation which has been shown to cause genetic damage and an increase in the risk of
cancer.
Research shows that teenagers and young adults are the largest group of mobile phone users.
According to a recent
Eurobarometer
survey, 30 per cent of Europeans aged 12-13 own a mobile phone and
the number of children five to nine years old owning mobiles has greatly increased over the years Children
are especially vulnerable because their brains and nervous systems are not as immune to attack as adults. Sir
William Stewart, chairman of the National Radiological Protection Board, says there is mounting evidence
to prove the harmful effects of wireless technologies and that families should monitor their children’s use of
them.
Besides the physical
and biological damage, technology can also have serious mental implications for
children. It can be the cause of severe addictive behaviour. In one case, two children had to be admitted into
a mental health clinic In Northern Spain because of their addiction to mobile phones. An average of six
hours a day would be spent talking, texting and playing games on their phones. The children could not be
separated from their phones and showed disturbed behaviour that was making them fail at school. They