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VOA慢速英语2013 饮酒对人体的好处和坏处

时间:2013-11-30 14:43:25

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Alcohol Drinking Can Be Both Good and Bad For You 饮酒对人体的好处和坏处

From VOA Learning English, this is Science in the News. I’m Bob Doughty1.

And I’m Kelly Jean Kelly. Drinking alcohol is a socially acceptable behavior in many parts of the world. Some medical experts say light drinking may even be good for  your health, especially for the heart. But they say such health benefits should be compared to the many health risks connected with alcohol use. Today we report on  some of the issues involving alcohol use.

Millions of people around the world have a glass of wine with dinner, drink a beer at a sporting event, or accept alcoholic2 drinks at a party.

The use of alcohol dates back more than 10,000 years. From then until now, alcohol has played an important part in human civilization. It is used in cultural and  religious ceremonies, at social gatherings3, and even for medical purposes.

Records of alcohol’s effects date back to ancient times. Alcohol has been called both a tonic4 and a poison. And medical experts continue to debate its value.

Alcohol is created through a process called fermentation. During this process, yeast5 is used to turn sugar into a simple molecule6 – ethanol, also called ethyl  alcohol. Different kinds of sugar are used to make different alcoholic drinks. For example, the sugar from grapes is used to make wine. Sugar from grain is used to  produce vodka and gin. And sugar from sugarcane or molasses can produce rum.

Alcohol affects every organ in the body. When alcohol enters the body, some of it goes immediately to the stomach and the bloodstream. The rest of it, about 80  percent, goes to the small intestine7 and is released into the bloodstream. Once alcohol enters the blood, it is pumped throughout the body by the heart.

The liver is responsible for detoxifying the alcohol and removing it from the blood. But, the liver can only process a small amount of alcohol at a time. The rest  continues to move throughout the body. It mixes with the water in tissue. It also enters the central nervous system and the brain. Ethanol acts as a drug, affecting  coordination, emotions and the ability to think.

There has been a large amount of research done on alcohol and its effects on human health. Much of the research has examined the harmful effects. But, some research  suggests that having one to two drinks of alcohol a day may offer some health benefits.

Several large studies have shown that this type of moderate drinking may lower the risk of coronary heart disease, cardiovascular disease, ischemic stroke and  diabetes. Moderate drinking has also been linked to a reduced risk of death from heart attack and a decreased risk of Alzheimer’s and other dementias.

A study last year suggested that drinking small amounts of red wine may help lower the risk of breast cancer in women.  Researchers at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in  California studied 36 women. Each woman drank a glass of red or white wine every day for almost a month. Researchers collected blood samples from the women two times a  month to measure their hormone8 levels.

The next month the women who drank red wine were told to drink white wine instead. The white wine drinkers were told to drink red wine. The researchers found that the  women who drank red wine had lower levels of the female hormone estrogen than the white wine drinkers. Estrogen levels are known to increase the growth of cancer cells  in the body.

Glenn Braunstein helped to prepare a report on the study. He said red grapes have chemicals that are not found in white grapes. He said the findings suggest that these  chemicals may help to lower the risk of breast cancer.

The report was published in the Journal of Women’s Health. Both Dr. Braunstein and study organizer Chrisandra Shufelt called for larger studies to measure the safety  and effectiveness of red wine in reducing breast cancer risk. They said other recent studies suggested that even small amounts of alcohol may generally increase the  risk of breast cancer in women.

Researchers at Harvard University carried out one such study. It found that women who drink four small glasses of wine a week increase their risk of breast cancer by  15 percent.

Many studies have examined the harmful effects of alcohol use on the body. Medical experts say the deciding issues are how much alcohol you drink, and how you drink  it. For example, experts say having three drinks in one day is not the same as having one drink a day for three days.

Alicia Ann Kowalchuk serves as medical director for an alcohol and drug intervention9 program called InSight, at the Harris County Hospital District in Houston, Texas.  She is also an assistant professor at the Baylor College of Medicine.

 “We think of substance use issues along a continuum now, going all the way from abstinence, to healthy use, to misuse10, to abuse and to dependency. Healthy use for  adults -- that’s men under age sixty-five -- is no more than four drinks in a day and no more than fourteen drinks in a week. And for women of all ages, it’s no more  than seven drinks in a week and no more than three drinks on a day.”   She says that to get the health benefits linked to alcohol, men and women should limit their  drinking even more.

“Pretty much all the literature that I’ve seen really shows that when you go above about one drink on average per day for women and two drinks on average per day for  men younger than sixty-five, you start negating11 all of those positive health benefits.”        Dr. Kowalchuk says staying within those limits is considered safe or  non-hazardous drinking.

“For misuse you’re drinking above those limits, but you haven’t had a lot of consequences from your drinking. Once you get to abuse you start having consequences  and despite the consequences you keep using. So that’s the hallmark of abuse, to continue using for at least a year despite having maybe a DUI (drinking under the  influence), a health consequence, a work consequence or a family consequence.”

And, she says, alcohol dependency is further marked by a complete loss of control over alcohol use.

The Size of the Drink MattersKim Dennis is medical director at the Timberline Knolls12 Residential13 Treatment Center in Illinois. She notes another consideration when  talking about alcohol limits.

“When we talk about an alcoholic beverage14, we need to be very clear about what we’re talking about because many of my patients at Timberline Knolls would consider a  thirty-two ounce glass of beer one alcoholic beverage. And when we talk about having one alcoholic beverage, we’re referring specifically to twelve ounces of beer,  five ounces of wine or one and a half ounces of hard liquor.”  She says that whether drinking alcohol is a good choice for you will depend on several things.

“If a person has risk factors for developing alcoholism -- family members with alcoholism, difficult early life experiences, other addictive15 disorders16 - - the risk to  benefit ratio of drinking alcohol for that person would be very, very high.”  Excessive alcohol use has been linked to chronic17 conditions like cirrhosis of the liver,  pancreas disease and cardiovascular disease. It has also been linked to many forms of cancer, including cancer of the mouth, throat, larynx, esophagus, breast, colon18  and rectum.

The World Health Organization says the harmful use of alcohol results in 2,500,000 deaths each year. This number includes more than 300,000 people between the ages of  15 and 29. The WHO says alcohol use is the world’s third leading cause of disease, after childhood malnourishment and unsafe sex.

A recent survey suggests that more and more young people are getting the message when it comes to the dangers of alcohol use. The study found that three out of four  American high school students say they do not drink alcohol.

Nearly 700 students were questioned. One reason teenagers said they chose not to drink is because underage drinking is illegal. They also noted19 the effect of alcohol  on health and their performance in school as other reasons. In addition, more than half of the teens questioned said they would be less likely to be friends with, or  go out with, someone who drinks underage.

The group Mothers Against Drunk Driving, known as MADD, reported the findings last month. MADD and the State Farm insurance company worked together to organize an  event called Red Ribbon Week. The aim was to raise understanding about the dangers of drugs and alcohol among youth.

MADD says the survey shows that most students are making intelligent decisions when it comes to alcohol use. But it notes that about 4,700 Americans still die every  year as a result of underage drinking.

This Science in the News was written by June Simms, who was also our producer. I’m Bob Doughty.


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点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 doughty Jk5zg     
adj.勇猛的,坚强的
参考例句:
  • Most of successful men have the characteristics of contumacy and doughty.绝大多数成功人士都有共同的特质:脾气倔强,性格刚强。
  • The doughty old man battled his illness with fierce determination.坚强的老人用巨大毅力与疾病作斗争。
2 alcoholic rx7zC     
adj.(含)酒精的,由酒精引起的;n.酗酒者
参考例句:
  • The alcoholic strength of brandy far exceeds that of wine.白兰地的酒精浓度远远超过葡萄酒。
  • Alcoholic drinks act as a poison to a child.酒精饮料对小孩犹如毒药。
3 gatherings 400b026348cc2270e0046708acff2352     
聚集( gathering的名词复数 ); 收集; 采集; 搜集
参考例句:
  • His conduct at social gatherings created a lot of comment. 他在社交聚会上的表现引起许多闲话。
  • During one of these gatherings a pupil caught stealing. 有一次,其中一名弟子偷窃被抓住。
4 tonic tnYwt     
n./adj.滋补品,补药,强身的,健体的
参考例句:
  • It will be marketed as a tonic for the elderly.这将作为老年人滋补品在市场上销售。
  • Sea air is Nature's best tonic for mind and body.海上的空气是大自然赋予的对人们身心的最佳补品。
5 yeast 7VIzu     
n.酵母;酵母片;泡沫;v.发酵;起泡沫
参考例句:
  • Yeast can be used in making beer and bread.酵母可用于酿啤酒和发面包。
  • The yeast began to work.酵母开始发酵。
6 molecule Y6Tzn     
n.分子,克分子
参考例句:
  • A molecule of water is made up of two atoms of hygrogen and one atom of oxygen.一个水分子是由P妈̬f婘̬ 妈̬成的。
  • This gives us the structural formula of the molecule.这种方式给出了分子的结构式。
7 intestine rbpzY     
adj.内部的;国内的;n.肠
参考例句:
  • This vitamin is absorbed through the walls of the small intestine.这种维生素通过小肠壁被吸收。
  • The service productivity is the function,including external efficiency,intestine efficiency and capacity efficiency.服务业的生产率是一个包含有外部效率、内部效率和能力效率的函数。
8 hormone uyky3     
n.荷尔蒙,激素,内分泌
参考例句:
  • Hormone implants are used as growth boosters.激素植入物被用作生长辅助剂。
  • This hormone interacts closely with other hormones in the body.这种荷尔蒙与体內其他荷尔蒙紧密地相互作用。
9 intervention e5sxZ     
n.介入,干涉,干预
参考例句:
  • The government's intervention in this dispute will not help.政府对这场争论的干预不会起作用。
  • Many people felt he would be hostile to the idea of foreign intervention.许多人觉得他会反对外来干预。
10 misuse XEfxx     
n.误用,滥用;vt.误用,滥用
参考例句:
  • It disturbs me profoundly that you so misuse your talents.你如此滥用自己的才能,使我深感不安。
  • He was sacked for computer misuse.他因滥用计算机而被解雇了。
11 negating 92a43cdd62e27f9ac780272552c6907e     
v.取消( negate的现在分词 );使无效;否定;否认
参考例句:
  • The decline of community life is negating the work of welfare services. 社区生活的下降否定了福利机构的工作。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Post-modernity transcends modernity by the means of negating and clearing up selfhood. 后现代超越现代性是通过否定和消解主体来实现的。 来自互联网
12 knolls 10e6bc9e96f97e83fad35374bcf19f02     
n.小圆丘,小土墩( knoll的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • He carefully surveyed the ridges and knolls once more, and also the ravines and gullies. 他又注意地巡视着那些梁和峁,还有沟和壑。 来自互联网
13 residential kkrzY3     
adj.提供住宿的;居住的;住宅的
参考例句:
  • The mayor inspected the residential section of the city.市长视察了该市的住宅区。
  • The residential blocks were integrated with the rest of the college.住宿区与学院其他部分结合在了一起。
14 beverage 0QgyN     
n.(水,酒等之外的)饮料
参考例句:
  • The beverage is often colored with caramel.这种饮料常用焦糖染色。
  • Beer is a beverage of the remotest time.啤酒是一种最古老的饮料。
15 addictive hJbyL     
adj.(吸毒等)使成瘾的,成为习惯的
参考例句:
  • The problem with video game is that they're addictive.电子游戏机的问题在于它们会使人上瘾。
  • Cigarettes are highly addictive.香烟很容易使人上瘾。
16 disorders 6e49dcafe3638183c823d3aa5b12b010     
n.混乱( disorder的名词复数 );凌乱;骚乱;(身心、机能)失调
参考例句:
  • Reports of anorexia and other eating disorders are on the increase. 据报告,厌食症和其他饮食方面的功能紊乱发生率正在不断增长。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • The announcement led to violent civil disorders. 这项宣布引起剧烈的骚乱。 来自《简明英汉词典》
17 chronic BO9zl     
adj.(疾病)长期未愈的,慢性的;极坏的
参考例句:
  • Famine differs from chronic malnutrition.饥荒不同于慢性营养不良。
  • Chronic poisoning may lead to death from inanition.慢性中毒也可能由虚弱导致死亡。
18 colon jqfzJ     
n.冒号,结肠,直肠
参考例句:
  • Here,too,the colon must be followed by a dash.这里也是一样,应当在冒号后加破折号。
  • The colon is the locus of a large concentration of bacteria.结肠是大浓度的细菌所在地。
19 noted 5n4zXc     
adj.著名的,知名的
参考例句:
  • The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
  • Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

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