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科学家研究黑巧克力对健康的好处

Dark chocolate is known to help prevent heart disease, but eating too much of it may be not so good for your body weight. But never fear! Scientists are looking for a way to concentrate dark chocolate's helpful ingredients in supplemental pills. 

人们知道，黑巧克力有助于预防心脏病。但是吃太多黑巧克力可能对体重不好。可是，科学家们说，不用担心！他们正在设法把黑巧克力中有利健康的成分提炼制成一种营养补充药片。

Cocoa contains chemicals called flavanols that may help reduce the risk of strokes and heart attacks by lowering blood pressure and bad cholesterol¹ levels and improving the body's use of insulin.

巧克力的主要成分可可含有一种化学物质，叫黄烷醇。它能降低血压和坏胆固醇的水平，改善人体对胰岛素的利用，因此可能有助于减少中风和心脏病的风险。

Washington chocolatier Steve Koumanelis said that is one reason dark chocolate is increasingly popular among his customers.

华盛顿的巧克力制造商库马内利斯说，这是黑巧克力日益受到顾客欢迎的一个原因。

“A lot of people are gravitating towards dark chocolate because they just decide they love it, and they also have been reading all about the health benefits of dark chocolate,” said Koumanelis.

“黑巧克力对很多人有吸引力，因为他们就是喜欢这种口味。而且有好多文章都说黑巧克力对健康有好处。”

But those benefits have not been confirmed by studies involving large numbers of people. Also, during the manufacture of chocolate, many flavanoids are destroyed, while sugar and saturated² fats are added to contribute to flavor.

但是，这些好处并没有得到有大批人参与的研究的证实。另外，在制造过程中，很多黄烷醇被破坏，为了提高口味，制造商在巧克力里加了糖和饱和脂肪。

Scientists now want to learn the benefits of flavanols in their unadulterated form. They plan a four-year study of 18,000 adults, who will take capsules of pure cocoa flavanols, in what is being called the largest test of its kind.

现在科学家要了解，未经改变的黄烷醇有哪些好处。他们计划对1万8千名成年人做四年研究，让这些人吃纯的可可黄烷醇药片，这是同类试验中规模最大的。

Jo-Ann Manson, of the Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, is the lead researcher.

波士顿布里甘妇女医院的曼森医生是这项研究的领先者。

“This capsule of cocoa flavanols will avoid having the calories and the sugar and the saturated fat found in chocolate,” said Manson.

“这种可可黄烷醇药片不含热量、糖和巧克力中常有的饱和脂肪。”

The capsules also won't have any taste.

药片也没有味道。

Participants, divided in two groups, will take two identical pills a day. One group’s pills will contain flavanols, while the others will get placebo³ pills.

参与试验的人分成两组，每天吃两粒同样的药片。一组人的药片里含黄烷醇，另一组吃的是安慰剂。

“The amount of chocolate that it would take in order to have this amount of cocoa flavanols would be more than ten times the amount that people would ordinarily eat,” said Manson.

研究项目负责人曼森说：“试验者吃的药片里含的黄烷醇剂量很大，比人们通常吃巧克力时摄入的黄烷醇高十多倍。“

Whatever the outcome of the study, Koumanelis said he’s not worried about his business.

库马内利斯说，不管研究结果如何，他都不担心自己的巧克力生意。

“People like the experience of actually biting into a piece of chocolate, whatever their favorites are,” he said.

“人们享受嚼巧克力那种特别的感觉，不管他们最喜欢哪种巧克力。“

The flavanol benefits test is still in the early stage, so scientists are not sure when the participants will be handed their first chocolate pills. In the meantime, they'll get their flavanols the old fashioned way!

现在对黄烷醇的好处的试验还处在初期阶段。科学家们还不确定什么时候向参与者分发第一批巧克力药片。同时，人们还是靠吃巧克力来摄取黄烷醇。