新奇事件簿 午睡增加中风几率

People used to believe that taking an afternoon nap was good for their health. However, according to a new report, daytime dozing¹ may actually harm our health, especially in the elderly. A team of American researchers told the recent International Stroke Conference that older people who regularly napped were more likely to suffer a stroke. Their research showed that “some dozing” increased the risk of a stroke by up to 2.6 times, compared with those who never took naps. “Significant dozing” meant the risk was 4.5 times higher. The researchers said that the habit of napping may be an early warning sign of a future stroke. The team leader, Dr Bernadette Boden-Albala advised doctors to keep a check on older people who often dozed² off. She said: “If patients are moderately or significantly dozing, physicians need to think about sending them for further evaluation³."

人们一直以为午睡有益健康。但根据最新研究显示，日间小憩实际对人体有害，特别是老年人。日前，美国研究小组在国际中风会议上表示，经常瞌睡的老年人更容易引起中风。据研究所说，偶尔“小睡”人群比从不“小睡”人群患中风的概率增加2.6倍。但长期瞌睡的患病概率高达4.5倍。研究人员表示，瞌睡或是中风的早期前兆。研究组长伯纳黛特·博登建议医生对长期瞌睡的老年群体进行检查。她认为：“如果病患的瞌睡症状为中度或重度，那么医生需要对病人进行进一步检查。”

In the two-and-a-half-year study, the team asked 2,000 people how often they dozed off in different situations. These included while watching TV, sitting and chatting to someone, relaxing after lunch, and stopping in traffic while driving. All the participants were aged⁴ 40 or above and none had previously⁵ suffered a stroke. The team's findings were adjusted to take into account traditional stroke risk factors, such as age, race, gender⁶, education, blood pressure, diabetes⁷, obesity⁸, and levels of exercise. Dr Boden-Albala suggested we need to question what is healthiest for us, saying “sleepiness obviously puts us at risk of stroke". She added this was important to ask because other studies show that people do not get enough sleep, which makes them constantly tired. The study's findings may not be comfortable reading for those in countries where siestas⁹ are common.

在这项为期2年半的研究中，研究小组询问了2000名民众，就不同情况下的瞌睡次数进行了调查。这些情况包括看电视、久坐、与人交谈、午后休息、开车等红灯。被询问者的年龄均为40岁或以上，并从未患有中风。这一发现让我们想到了传统中风病因，例如年龄、种族、性别、教育、血压、糖尿病、肥胖以及锻炼。博登博士认为人们应该想明白什么对自己最健康，她认为：“瞌睡很明显会增加中风几率。”她认为知道这一点非常重要，因为还有许多研究证明，人们的困乏是因睡眠不足所致。对于经常午睡的国家，这项研究或许不会给你带来阅读愉悦感。

1 dozing   

v.打瞌睡,假寐 n.瞌睡

参考例句：

• The economy shows no signs of faltering. 经济没有衰退的迹象。
• He never falters in his determination. 他的决心从不动摇。

2 dozed   

v.打盹儿，打瞌睡( doze的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He boozed till daylight and dozed into the afternoon. 他喝了个通霄，昏沉沉地一直睡到下午。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• I dozed off during the soporific music. 我听到这催人入睡的音乐，便不知不觉打起盹儿来了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 evaluation   

n.估价，评价；赋值

参考例句：

• I attempted an honest evaluation of my own life.我试图如实地评价我自己的一生。
• The new scheme is still under evaluation.新方案还在评估阶段。

4 aged   

adj.年老的，陈年的

参考例句：

• He had put on weight and aged a little.他胖了，也老点了。
• He is aged,but his memory is still good.他已年老，然而记忆力还好。

5 previously   

adv.以前，先前（地）

参考例句：

• The bicycle tyre blew out at a previously damaged point.自行车胎在以前损坏过的地方又爆开了。
• Let me digress for a moment and explain what had happened previously.让我岔开一会儿，解释原先发生了什么。

6 gender   

n.（生理上的）性，（名词、代词等的）性

参考例句：

• French differs from English in having gender for all nouns.法语不同于英语，所有的名词都有性。
• Women are sometimes denied opportunities solely because of their gender.妇女有时仅仅因为性别而无法获得种种机会。

7 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。

8 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。

9 siestas   

n.（气候炎热国家的）午睡，午休( siesta的名词复数 )

参考例句：