新西兰英语 793 Good health needed for visa

 　　Immigration New Zealand will not renew the work visa of a South African man, who was a chef in Christchurch, because he is obese¹. He is 178 cm tall, weighs 130kg and has a Body Mass Index (BMI) of more than 40. Immigration New Zealand said that anyone with a BMI of more than 35 could have major health problems which would cost the country. Obese people have more risk of diabetes², heart disease, and disease to joints³ like knees or hips⁴.

　　It is strange that Immigration New Zealand gave this man a work visa 6 years ago when he weighed 30kg more. Every year he had to renew his work visa but this year, Immigration New Zealand refused to renew it. Perhaps it is because he already has a problem with his knee.

　　His wife is a waitress in the same restaurant. Their employer said they are “great employees” and good workers. They have been working here for 6 years and paying New Zealand taxes.

　　There is a shortage of chefs in New Zealand. This is one of the occupations on the Immigration New Zealand skill shortage list.

　　New Zealand already has many obese people. We are third in obesity⁵ in the developed world, after USA and Mexico.

　　Vocabulary

　　?renew – continue the visa for another year

　　?obese (adj), obesity (n) – overweight

　　?BMI – Wikipedia has a chart showing height, weight and BMI

　　?risk (of) – danger, more likely to happen

　　?diabetes – a disease where a person has high blood sugar

　　?refused – said ‘No’

　　?employer – boss

　　?employee – worker

　　?shortage – not enough

　　?skill shortage list – Immigration New Zealand has a long list of skills needed in New Zealand.

1 obese   

adj.过度肥胖的，肥大的

参考例句：

• The old man is really obese,it can't be healthy.那位老人确实过于肥胖了，不能算是健康。
• Being obese and lazy is dangerous to health.又胖又懒危害健康。

2 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。

3 joints   

接头( joint的名词复数 )； 关节； 公共场所（尤指价格低廉的饮食和娱乐场所） （非正式）； 一块烤肉 （英式英语）

参考例句：

• Expansion joints of various kinds are fitted on gas mains. 各种各样的伸缩接头被安装在煤气的总管道上了。
• Expansion joints of various kinds are fitted on steam pipes. 各种各样的伸缩接头被安装在蒸气管道上了。

4 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》

5 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。