If you keep hearing things that aren't there, you're probably drinking too much coffee.
Just five cups a day could be enough to make your ears play tricks on you, according to researchers from the La Trobe University in Melbourne.
In an experiment carried by a team from the university's School of Psychological Sciences , volunteers who had consumed "high levels" of caffeine thought they were listening to Bing Crosby singing White Christmas even though the song was not being played.
In the tests, 92 volunteers were asked to listen to a constant fuzzy sound known as white noise.
Professor Simon Crowe, of La Trobe University, said: "We also told them that within the white noise there may be parts of the song White Christmas and if you hear it, press a button."
"We didn't include White Christmas in the white noise but found that people who were very stressed and had high levels of caffeine thought they heard the song."
The researchers described caffeine as "the most commonly used psychoactive drug".
They said the study showed that the health risks of too much coffee need to be addressed.
"The combination of caffeine and stressaffect the likelihood of an individual experiencing a psychosis-like symptom."
"Caution needs to be exercised with the use of this overtly 'safe' drug", Professor Crowe added.


如果你持续出现幻听，那可能是咖啡喝多了。

根据墨尔本拉筹伯大学的一项研究，每天5杯咖啡足以使我们被自己的耳朵捉弄。

在拉筹伯大学心理科学学院研究小组的一项实验中，尽管并没有播放音乐，但饮用了大量咖啡因的志愿者总以为自己在听平克-劳斯贝的歌曲白色圣诞节。


测试中，92名志愿者听取了一段被称为白噪音的连续模糊的声音。

"我们同时告诉志愿者，在白噪音中可能会有白色圣诞节的部分曲子，如果有人听到了就请按一个按钮"，拉筹伯大学教授西蒙-克罗说。

"我们并未在白噪音中加入白色圣诞节片段，但研究发现，过分紧张并且饮用大量咖啡因的志愿者认为自己听到了那首歌。"
研究人员将咖啡因形容为 "最常用的影响心灵的药剂"

该研究显示，饮用过多咖啡而带来的健康风险需要得到重视。
"咖啡因何压力结合在一起，会影响一个人出现类似精神症状的可能性。"


"人们在饮用'惯常安全'的咖啡时一定得注意了"， 克罗教授补充说。

• constant [´kɔnstənt] a.坚定的；坚贞的 (初中英语单词)
• combination [,kɔmbi´neiʃən] n.结合；联合；团体 (初中英语单词)
• stress [stres] n.强调；压力 vt.强调 (初中英语单词)
• affect [ə´fekt] vt.影响；感动；假装 (初中英语单词)
• hearing [´hiəriŋ] n.听力；听证会；审讯 (高中英语单词)
• commonly [´kɔmənli] ad.一般地；通常 (高中英语单词)
• psychological [,saikə´lɔdʒikəl] a.心理学(上)的 (英语四级单词)
• likelihood [´laiklihud] n.可能，相似性 (英语六级单词)