TheGood,TheBadAndTheEwwOfEarwaxRemoval清除耳垢的好处与坏处Earsaresupposedtobeself-cleaning.Sowhat'sbehindthefascinationsomepeoplehavetohelpnaturealong?耳朵被认为有自我清洁功能。那为什么有些人还喜欢多此一举？Some12millionAmericansvisitmedicalprofessionalsannuallyforearwaxremoval.Millionsmorehaveitdoneatspasandear-candlingparlors,whichtheoreticallysuckoutearwaxwithalightedcandle.NorthAmericansalsospent$63millionlastyearonhomeear-cleaningproducts,fromdropstoirrigationkits,accordingtomarketresearchfirmEuromonitorInternational.约1,200万美国人为了清除耳垢而每年看医生。还有上百万人在水疗院和耳烛美容院清除耳垢，后者理论上是借助点燃的蜡烛把耳垢吸出来。根据市场研究机构欧睿国际(EuromonitorInternational)的数据，去年，北美人还花了6,300万美元购买各类家用清除耳垢产品，从滴耳液到灌耳工具包，不一而足。OnInternethealthforums,peoplewaxrhapsodicabouttheguiltypleasureofhavingtheirearwaxremoved--thoughsomewonderifit'swrongtoenjoyitsomuch.在网络健康论坛上，人们狂热地讨论着挖耳垢的罪恶快感──尽管有些人怀疑如此爱挖耳垢是否有问题。Othersareunabashed.'Iabsolutelylovetohavemyearscleaned,'saysHollyKile,anonlinebusinessmanagerfromIndianapoliswhosayssheusescottonswabsdailyandhasherearscandledeverycoupleofmonths,asdoesher12-year-oldson.'It'sgenerallyacompetitiontoseewhohasthegrossestthingscomeout,'shesays.还有些人不以为然。印第安纳波利斯(Indianapolis)的网络商务经理霍利•凯尔(HollyKile)说：“我很喜欢把耳朵掏干净。”她说，她每天用棉签掏耳朵，每隔几个月用耳烛吸一次耳垢，她12岁的儿子也是如此。她说：“我们通常会比赛，看谁掏出的耳垢最多。”Doctorsstronglydiscourageusingcottonswabsorearcandlingtoremoveearwaxandsaythatunlessit'scausingbothersomesymptoms,earwaxshouldbeleftalone.医生们强烈反对用棉签或耳烛清除耳垢，并称除非耳垢导致不良症状，否则应该不要去管它。Officiallyknownascerumen,earwaxispartoftheear'sowncleaningsystem,designedtostopincomingdust,dirt,bacteria--evenbugs--intheearcanalandferrythemoutagain.Thewaxandtrappeddebrisarepropelledalongbythemovementsofthejaw,ataboutthesamespeedthatfingernailsgrow.Whenitreachestheearopening,thewaxusuallydries,flakesandfallsout,oftenwithoutthehumanhostnoticing.耳垢的正式名称是耵聍，它是耳朵自我清洁系统的一部分，目的是阻止进入耳道的灰尘、污物、细菌──甚至是虫子──并把它们赶出去。耳垢和沉积的废屑被活动的下颚推动，它的增长速度和手指甲大致相同。当耳垢到达耳道口时，通常会变干、变薄并掉出来，且通常不会被人类注意到。Theprocessisn'talwayssmooth.Havingtoomuchearwax,orwaxthatistoodryortoosticky,cancreateabuildup.Muchofthatisgeneticallydetermined.'Whenitcomestoearwax,chooseyourparentswell,'saysRichardRosenfeld,chairofotolaryngologyatSUNYDownstateMedicalCenterinBrooklyn.这个过程并非总是一帆风顺。耳垢太多、太干或太黏都会导致耳垢堆积。这主要是由基因决定的。位于布鲁克林(Brooklyn)的纽约州立大学下州医学中心(SUNYDownstateMedicalCenter)的耳鼻喉科主任理查德•罗森菲尔德(RichardRosenfeld)说：“在耳垢这个问题上，要选好父母。”Wearingear-budheadphones,hearingaidsorearplugsforlongperiodscanalsointerferewithorderlyextrusion.长期戴耳塞式耳机、助听器或耳塞都可能影响耳垢的规律性排出。Whenexcessearwaxhardensorgetspushedbackdownthecanal,itcanbecomeimpacted,whichafflictsapproximately10%ofchildren,5%ofhealthyadultsandupto57%ofolderpatientsinnursinghomes,accordingtotheAmericanAcademyofOtolaryngology--HeadandNeckSurgery.当多余的耳垢变硬或被挤回耳道下方时，可能会导致耳塞。根据美国耳鼻喉-头颈外科学会(Am...
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