生活英语：男人独会美女有害健康

 Meeting a beautiful woman can be bad for your health, scientists have found.

The effects are heightened in men who believe that the woman in question is "out of their league".

Cortisol is produced by the body under physical or psychological stress and has been linked to heart disease.

Researchers tested 84 male students by asking each one to sit in a room and solve a Sudoku puzzle. Two strangers, one male and one female, were also in the room.

When the female stranger left the room and the two men remained sitting together, the volunteer's stress levels did not rise. However, when the volunteer was left alone with the female stranger, his cortisol levels rose.

The researchers concluded: "In this study we considered that for most men the presence of an attractive woman may induce the perception that there is an opportunity for courtship.

"While some men might avoid attractive women since they think they are 'out of their league', the majority would respond with apprehension¹ and a concurrent² hormonal³ response.

"This study showed that male cortisol levels increased after exposure to a five-minute short social contact with a young, attractive woman."

Cortisol can have a positive effect in small doses, improving alertness and well-being⁴. However, chronically⁵ elevated cortisol levels can worsen medical conditions such as heart disease, diabetes⁶, hypertension and impotency.

科研人员日前发现，与美女会面可能有害健康。

尤其是当男性遇到他们觉得“遥不可及”的美女时，这种影响会增强。

人的身体在生理或心理的压力下会产生一种名叫皮质醇的物质，这种物质与心脏病的发生有关。

研究人员对84名男性学生进行了测试，让他们每人坐在一个房间里做一道数独题。房间里还同时安排了一男一女两个陌生人。

当陌生女性离开房间，屋内剩下两名男性时，研究对象的压力水平没有升高。而当调查对象与陌生女性单独共处一室时，他的皮质醇水平便出现了升高。

研究人员得出结论：“在这项研究中我们发现，对于大多数男性来说，美女的出现会让他们产生这样一种想法，即存在求爱的机会。

“尽管一些男性会因为觉得美女‘遥不可及’而避免与她们接触，但大多数男性的反应还是比较积极，同时荷尔蒙水平也会发生变化。

“研究显示，当男性与一个年轻漂亮的女性短暂接触五分钟后，皮质醇水平就会升高。”

少量的皮质醇能给人体带来一些积极影响，如提高机敏度，增进健康。然而，皮质醇水平长期过高会加重心脏病、糖尿病、高血压和性无能等疾病患者的病情。

1 apprehension   

n.理解，领悟；逮捕，拘捕；忧虑

参考例句：

• There were still areas of doubt and her apprehension grew.有些地方仍然存疑，于是她越来越担心。
• She is a girl of weak apprehension.她是一个理解力很差的女孩。

2 concurrent   

adj.同时发生的，一致的

参考例句：

• You can't attend two concurrent events!你不能同时参加两项活动！
• The twins had concurrent birthday. 双胞胎生日在同一天。

3 hormonal   

adj.激素的

参考例句：

• Some viral diseases are more severe during pregnancy, probably tecause of hormonal changes. 有些病毒病在妊娠期间比较严重，可能是由于激素变化引起的。
• She underwent surgical intervention and a subsequent short period of hormonal therapy. 他接受外科手术及随后短暂荷尔蒙治疗。

4 well-being   

n.安康，安乐，幸福

参考例句：

• He always has the well-being of the masses at heart.他总是把群众的疾苦挂在心上。
• My concern for their well-being was misunderstood as interference.我关心他们的幸福，却被误解为多管闲事。

5 chronically   

ad.长期地

参考例句：

• Similarly, any pigment nevus that is chronically irritated should be excised. 同样，凡是经常受慢性刺激的各种色素痣切勿予以切除。
• People chronically exposed to chlorine develop some degree of tolerance. 人长期接触氯气可以产生某种程度的耐受性。

6 diabetes   

n.糖尿病

参考例句：

• In case of diabetes, physicians advise against the use of sugar.对于糖尿病患者，医生告诫他们不要吃糖。
• Diabetes is caused by a fault in the insulin production of the body.糖尿病是由体內胰岛素分泌失调引起的。