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Eat Less, Live Longer 少吃延寿

課文朗讀

課文中英文講解

繁體中文譯本

You want to live forever, do you? Well, you’re not alone. Since ancient times, people have been searching for the secret to immortality. Chinese alchemist looked for the answer in a magical substance that turned out to be gunpowder. And that sure hasn’t helped us live longer. In the 16^th century, Spanish explorers set out to find the fabled fountain of youth and instead found Florida. And this has only given Americans a warm place for retirement.

你想长生不死，对吧?这么想的可不只你一人。自古以来，人们便一直寻找长生不死的秘密。中国的炼金术士在一种神秘的物质中寻找答案，最后却发现那其实是火药，而火药当然无助于我们活得更久。十六世纪时，西班牙探险家踏上征途去寻找传说中的青春之泉，结果反而发现了佛罗里达州，而这也只是提供美国人退休后一个温暖的去处罢了。

These days, scientists are skeptical that anyone will discover how to live forever. However, they do believe that extending life to over a hundred years is very possible. In fact, real progress in this field was made back in the 1930s at Cornell University in the U.S. There, researchers discovered that rat fed a calorie-restricted diet stayed youthful looking well into old age. The rats also lived up to one-third longer than those on a normal diet. Tests with dogs, monkeys and horses produced similar results. But would calories restriction (CR) work with humans?

近来，科学家仍怀疑是否有人可以发现长生不死的方法。然而，他们的确相信将寿命延长至一百岁以上是很有可能的。事实上，早在1930年代，美国的康乃尔大学已在这个领域有实际的进展。康乃尔大学的研究人员发现，被喂以热量限制饮食的老鼠可以到很老时都维持年轻的外形，这些老鼠的寿命也比那些吃平常饮食的老鼠多了三分之一。这项实验在狗、猴子和马身上都得到了类似的结果，但是热量限制对人类也有效吗?

The good news is yes. CR probably works for humans, too. Scientists think that a CR diet puts mild stress on cells, which actually makes them stronger and more resistant to diseases. The diet may also turn on genes that control longevity. CR is certainly not the fountain of youth. But if it helps people remain healthy and youthful right into old age, it may be the next best thing.

好消息是「是的」，热量限制或许也对人类有效。科学家认为热量限制饮食会对细胞施以轻微的压力，这真的会让细胞更强壮并对疾病更具有抵抗力，这种饮食可能也会启动控制寿命的基因。热量限制饮食当然不是青春之泉，但如果它帮助人们在年老时维持健康与年轻，它或许是下一个最赞的东西。

Vocabulary

substance [ˋsʌbstəns] n. 物质

fabled [ˋfeb!d] adj. 寓言中的，传说的，神话的

retirement [rɪˋtaɪrmənt] n. 退休

extend [ɪkˋstɛnd] v. 延长，延伸

restricted [rɪˋstrɪktɪd] adj. 受限制的

resistant [rɪˋzɪstənt] adj. 抗……的；防……的

More Information

immortality [͵ɪmɔrˋtælətɪ] n. 不死

alchemist [ˋælkəmɪst] n. 炼金术士

set out 动身, 开始

skeptical [ˋskɛptɪk!] adj. 怀疑的

turn on  打开

longevity [lɑnˋdʒɛvətɪ] n. 长命，长寿

Reading Questions

1. From ancient times on, people have been looking for ___

A. the key to longevity

B. the way to eat properly

C. the ability to resist diseases

D. the secret of looking young forever

2. According to the article, scientists believe that _____

A. the fountain of youth does exist

B. humans are likely to live over 100 years

C. the rats fed a CR diet can live forever

D. CR probably causes too many side effects

3. Which of the following is TRUE?

A. Chinese alchemists turned gunpowder into medicine for immortality by chance.

B. Spanish explorers found the fountain of youth in Florida.

C. Researchers at Cornell University discovered that CR made monkeys live longer.

D. A CR diet gives cells less stress, so it may help people remain healthy.

課文中英文講解

“Eat Less, Lose Weight.” We have all heard that claim made a thousand times in diet ads. But how about “Eat Less, Live Longer?” That’s a new ___1___. But surprisingly, there is evidence that a low calorie diet does actually extend life. It’s called CR (calorie restriction) and it’s ___2___ a lot of attention these days.

我们一定都在减肥广告中听过好几千次「少吃减重」这个主张，可是你认为「少吃延寿」怎样?这可是个新兴的主张。然而令人惊讶的是，有证据证明低热量饮食真的能延长寿命。这种饮食叫做热量限制饮食，而且近来越来越受到注目。

A typical follower of CR only consumes around 1,500 calories a day. This, by the way, is about 1,000 calories ___3___ than the recommended daily average. It’s like skipping your entire lunch and part of dinner every day!

典型采用热量限制饮食的人一天只摄取约1500大卡的热量。顺便一提，这大概比建议的平均摄取量少了一千大卡。这就好像你省略了每天的午餐和一部份的晚餐不吃!

Now this might sound like a recipe for an eating disorder, but CR followers are extremely careful ___4___ their diet. In fact, there is a CR Society to advise those ___5___ in living longer through eating less. The society recommends fresh foods ___6___ vitamin, mineral, and protein supplements. A typical breakfast might consist of low-fat yoghurt, lunch of steamed fish and a leafy salad, and dinner, a feast (if you can call it that) of steamed vegetables.

听起来好像会导致饮食失调，但热量限制饮食者对他们的饮食可是极尽小心之能事。事实上，有个热量限制协会会对少吃延寿有兴趣的人提供咨询，他们推荐新鲜食物及维他命、矿物质和蛋白质补充品。一份典型的早餐可能包括低脂优格，午餐则是蒸鱼及叶菜色拉，而晚餐则是一顿烫青菜大餐(如果可以称它为大餐的话)。

There is, as you might expect, a downside ___7___ the diet. Followers complain of tiredness, and hunger pangs. Also, they can’t eat many of their favorite food or play vigorous sports. For these reasons, we suspect CR, in its ___8___ form, will never really have a big following. After all, there isn’t much point in living longer if you can’t enjoy life.

正如你可能预期的，这样的饮食也有其缺点。热量限制饮食者的拥护者抱怨会有疲倦及饥饿的现象。还有，他们无法吃一些他们最爱吃的东西，也不能从事激烈运动。基于这些原因，我们觉得目前这种形式的热量限制饮食不会真的大受欢迎。毕竟，要是你不能享受生活的话，活再久又有什么意义呢?

－By Ben Andrews & Robert Kelly

Vocabulary

consume [kənˋsjum] v. 消耗; 吃

recommend [͵rɛkəˋmɛnd] v. 推荐; 建议

skip [skɪp] v. 略过

disorder [dɪsˋɔrdɚ] n.  (机能)失调，轻病

More Information

by the way: 顺便提起 a phrase indicating that the speaker is adding information

recipe [ˋrɛsəpɪ] n. 诀窍；方法[（+for）]

protein [ˋprotiɪn] n. 蛋白质

supplement [ˋsʌpləmənt] n. 补给品

yoghurt [ˋjogɚt] n. 酸奶；酸奶酪

downside [ˋdaʊnˋsaɪd] n. 负面﹐反面; 不利

complain [kəmˋplen] v. 抱怨，发牢骚[（+to/about/of）]

tiredness [ˋtaɪrdnɪs] n. 疲劳；倦怠

pang [pæŋ] n.（肉体上）剧痛，苦痛; （精神上）一阵极度的痛苦

vigorous [ˋvɪgərəs] adj. 强有力的

have a big following  大受欢迎

Answer