你是“勺形”还是“桥形”？站姿决定背痛与否

 　　Are you as straight-backed as a ballerina, or as hunched¹ as a dinosaur²?

　　你的后背是像芭蕾舞演员一样直，还是像恐龙的后背那么弯？

　　Your 'posture³ profile' can identify whether you will suffer from aches and pains in later life, the British Chiropractic Association has said.

　　英国脊椎治疗协会表明，从“侧面站姿”就能判断你是否会在以后遭受背痛折磨。

　　People whose heads lean forward are most likely to suffer back pain, its survey found. 英国脊椎治疗协会的调查表明，头向前倾的人更有可能罹患背痛。

　　Whether you are a 'spoon', 'bridge', 'leaning tower' or 'flat-pack' will determine your risk of having problems later.

　　“勺形”、“桥形”、“斜塔形”和“直背形”四种不同站姿将决定你在余生中患病的风险。

　　站姿决定背痛与否

　　While previous indicators⁴ have focused on body shapes, with larger-breasted women and 'apple' shapes being seen as a warning sign, this new research shows posture could be key in preventing back pain.

　　此前研究多关注人体体型。如果女性的胸部较大，且拥有“苹果形”身材，就需多加警惕。而这项新研究表明，站姿对预防背痛至关重要。

　　A quarter of women suffer pain lasting⁵ between one and three days starting at the relatively⁶ young age of 34, the survey found.

　　调查发现，患有背痛且持续时间在1-3天的女性群体中，有四分之一的女性都在相对较早的34岁就开始背痛了。

　　'Leaning towers' - women whose heads lean forward - are most likely to report pain, with almost six in ten with this posture already suffering and three in ten having daily twinges.

　　“斜塔形”女性的头部前倾，此类女性患上背痛的可能性最高。“斜塔形”群体中，有接近十分之六的人已经罹患背痛，有十分之三的人遭受日常刺痛。

　　Being a 'bridge' with an arched back was the second worse posture, followed by a 'spoon' position with rounded shoulders but a flat back.

　　“桥形”是第二大不良站姿，后背呈拱形；“勺形”则是第三大不良站姿，后背挺直但双肩下塌。

　　And a change in posture can be far less demanding than a crash diet or boot camp-style exercise programme.

　　改变站姿可要比速成节食和新人集训简单得多。

　　'Flat pack' ladies, who keep their backs flat are the most likely to avoid pain with a fifth reporting they have never suffered back or neck aches in their lives.

　　“直背形”女士后背挺直，是罹患背痛可能性最低的人群。调查人群中，有五分之一的“直背形”女性表明，她们一生从未患有背痛和脖子痛。

　　Tim Hutchful, a registered chiropractor and member of the British Chiropractic Association, said women looking to stave off back pain should try to keep their head and ankles in line.

　　注册脊椎按摩师、英国脊椎治疗协会的成员蒂姆·哈区福称，想要预防背痛的女性可以试着将头部和脚踝保持在一条直线上。

　　He said: 'Rather than worrying about being an apple or an hourglass, we want people to think about what they look like from the side.

　　他说道：“我们关心的不是‘苹果形’和‘沙漏形’身材，而是想让人们想想他们的侧面是什么样的。”

　　'Paying closer attention to your body's side profile can really help to identify back or neck pain triggers.

　　“密切注意身体的侧面轮廓可以帮助你判断背痛和脖子痛的诱因。”

　　'The perfect posture should give you a neutral side-on appearance, with your ears, shoulders, hips⁸, knees and ankles in line.

　　“完美的站姿应该能让你的侧面轮廓不偏不倚，双耳、双肩、臀部、膝盖和脚踝都处于同一条直线。”

　　'People who want to improve their back and neck pain symptoms through a better posture should try imagining they have a plumb⁹ line hanging straight from their ears to ankles - with everything in the middle sitting on the same line.

　　“想要改变站姿缓解背痛和脖子痛的人可以试着想象从双耳垂直向下延伸出一条直线，直至脚踝，中间的所有部位都要处于这条直线上。”

　　'One way to do this is to try standing¹⁰ in a relaxed way and then gently contracting the abdominal¹¹ muscles.

　　“要想达到这种效果，可以在放松站立时，缓缓地收腹。”

　　'When sitting, the gravity line should pass thorough ear, shoulder and hip⁷.'

　　“坐下时，这条垂直线应从双耳经双肩直达臀部。”

　　Over 1,200 women were surveyed.

　　这项研究中，有超过1200位女性接受调查。

　　Vocabulary

　　stave off: 避开；延缓

　　abdominal: 腹部的

1 hunched   

（常指因寒冷、生病或愁苦）耸肩弓身的，伏首前倾的

参考例句：

• He sat with his shoulders hunched up. 他耸起双肩坐着。
• Stephen hunched down to light a cigarette. 斯蒂芬弓着身子点燃一支烟。

2 dinosaur   

n.恐龙

参考例句：

• Are you trying to tell me that David was attacked by a dinosaur?你是想要告诉我大卫被一支恐龙所攻击？
• He stared at the faithful miniature of the dinosaur.他凝视著精确的恐龙缩小模型。

3 posture   

n.姿势，姿态，心态，态度；v.作出某种姿势

参考例句：

• The government adopted an uncompromising posture on the issue of independence.政府在独立这一问题上采取了毫不妥协的态度。
• He tore off his coat and assumed a fighting posture.他脱掉上衣，摆出一副打架的架势。

4 indicators   

（仪器上显示温度、压力、耗油量等的）指针( indicator的名词复数 )； 指示物； （车辆上的）转弯指示灯； 指示信号

参考例句：

• The economic indicators are better than expected. 经济指标比预期的好。
• It is still difficult to develop indicators for many concepts used in social science. 为社会科学领域的许多概念确立一个指标仍然很难。

5 lasting   

adj.永久的，永恒的；vbl.持续，维持

参考例句：

• The lasting war debased the value of the dollar.持久的战争使美元贬值。
• We hope for a lasting settlement of all these troubles.我们希望这些纠纷能获得永久的解决。

6 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

7 hip   

n.臀部，髋；屋脊

参考例句：

• The thigh bone is connected to the hip bone.股骨连着髋骨。
• The new coats blouse gracefully above the hip line.新外套在臀围线上优美地打着褶皱。

8 hips   

abbr.high impact polystyrene 高冲击强度聚苯乙烯，耐冲性聚苯乙烯n.臀部( hip的名词复数 )；[建筑学]屋脊；臀围（尺寸）；臀部…的

参考例句：

• She stood with her hands on her hips. 她双手叉腰站着。
• They wiggled their hips to the sound of pop music. 他们随着流行音乐的声音摇晃着臀部。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 plumb   

adv.精确地，完全地；v.了解意义，测水深

参考例句：

• No one could plumb the mystery.没人能看破这秘密。
• It was unprofitable to plumb that sort of thing.这种事弄个水落石出没有什么好处。

10 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

11 abdominal   

adj.腹（部）的，下腹的；n.腹肌

参考例句：

• The abdominal aorta is normally smaller than the thoracic aorta.腹主动脉一般比胸主动脉小。
• Abdominal tissues sometimes adhere after an operation.手术之后腹部有时会出现粘连。