VOA慢速英语2010年-Health Report - Health: Now, an Update

This is the VOA Special English Health Report.

People who stop smoking often replace cigarettes with food. A new study says the weight they gain may increase their diabetes¹ risk in the short term.

Type two diabetes is common in people who eat too much and exercise too little and those with a family history of it. Smoking is another risk factor. But quitting smoking may carry a temporary risk.

The study found that smokers² who quit had a seventy percent increased risk of developing the disease in the first six years. That was compared to those who had never smoked.

The risks were highest in the first three years. And the risk returned to normal after ten years of not smoking.

The researchers say weight gain is probably to blame for the increase. But they say smokers should stop anyway -- and the real message is not to even start.

Type two diabetes interferes³ with the body's use of insulin. The substance produced by the pancreas normally lowers blood sugar during and after eating. Over time, high blood sugar can lead to blindness, kidney failure, heart disease and nerve damage.

The study is from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. It appears in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

Another American study says obesity⁴ has become as great a threat to quality of life as smoking. It compared losses in what are called "quality-adjusted life years." The study found that losses from obesity are now equal to, if not greater than, those from smoking.

These days, there are fewer smokers in the country but more people who are extremely overweight. The findings are based on questions about health-related quality of life in government telephone surveys.

The study is from Columbia University and the City College of New York. It appears in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

And another study has linked each hour of watching television daily to an eighteen percent increased risk of death from heart disease. The study of adults in Australia also found an increased risk of death from others causes. The findings are published in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.

Lead author David Dunstan at the Baker⁵ IDI Heart and Diabetes Institute in Victoria says the body was designed to move. He says even if people have a healthy body weight, sitting for long periods of time still has an unhealthy influence on blood sugar and blood fats.

And that's the VOA Special English Health Report, written by Caty Weaver⁶ and available at voaspecialenglish.com. I'm Steve Ember.

1 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。

2 smokers   

吸烟者( smoker的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Many smokers who are chemically addicted to nicotine cannot cut down easily. 许多有尼古丁瘾的抽烟人不容易把烟戒掉。
• Chain smokers don't care about the dangers of smoking. 烟鬼似乎不在乎吸烟带来的种种危害。

3 interferes   

vi. 妨碍，冲突，干涉

参考例句：

• The noise interferes with my work. 这噪音妨碍我的工作。
• That interferes with my plan. 那干扰了我的计划。

4 obesity   

n.肥胖，肥大

参考例句：

• One effect of overeating may be obesity.吃得过多能导致肥胖。
• Sugar and fat can more easily lead to obesity than some other foods.糖和脂肪比其他食物更容易导致肥胖。

5 baker   

n.面包师

参考例句：

• The baker bakes his bread in the bakery.面包师在面包房内烤面包。
• The baker frosted the cake with a mixture of sugar and whites of eggs.面包师在蛋糕上撒了一层白糖和蛋清的混合料。

6 weaver   

n.织布工；编织者

参考例句：

• She was a fast weaver and the cloth was very good.她织布织得很快，而且布的质量很好。
• The eager weaver did not notice my confusion.热心的纺织工人没有注意到我的狼狈相。