英国新闻听力 孕妇宜多食鱼

Fish Eating Benefits Pregnant Women

REPORTER: Sufficient levels of Omega-3 are required every stage of our lives says Joseph Heblin. This is especially true during fetal development. Doctor Heblin has come to this conclusion by drawing on the avian longitudinal study conducted in the UK at the University of Bristol. In 1991, more than 14 and a half thousand pregnant women were enrolled¹ on the trial. Over the years, many scientists have collected large amounts of different data on the women and their children.

JOSEPH HEBLIN: We published, in the last of last year, the study that indicates that when women are eating more fish their children have the best verbal IQ, when they are aged² seven or eight. And when women are eating most fish, the children at seven or eight have the best behavioral profile. They interact with their peers better, they have better social behaviors and they have less problems with conduct disorders³ and violence.

REPORTER: How much is the difference between the best as it were, the best behaved the best performing kids whose mothers' were eating lots of fish compared to the kids with most of the intellectual problems and the behavioral problems whose mothers' were eating the least amount of fish, how, how much of a gap is there between the two?

JOSEPH HEBLIN: In an approximate way, when women were eating the most fish, about fourteen or fifteen percent of their kids had suboptimal IQ and suboptimal behavioral problems, about fourteen percent. And when women were eating no fish, then about thirty two percent of their kids were in the bottom quartile IQ or have suboptimal behavioral problems. So between, so it's a difference between fourteen percent and thirty two percent. And because the profiling of the children and the mothers' has been so careful we can tease out whether or not this effect of fish eating was really fish eating or whether it was something like how well the mothers' were educated or whether they were eating meat pies or vegetables or fruits or whether you know there was social conflict in the family when the kids were growing up or indeed a huge number of different factors which could have influenced this effect of fish eating. We are very confident that the suboptimal behavior and the suboptimal IQ was due to a relative deficiency of fish eating during the pregnancy⁴.

REPORTER: But you couldn't necessarily say that it's the Omega-3 fatty acid in take necessarily.

JOSEPH HEBLIN: In this study, we don't purport⁵. We think that it's likely that that's a huge contributor, um, but it's clear that there are other nutrients⁶ in fish which are contributory.

REPORTER: Based on his studies, Joseph Heblin advocates that pregnant women eat plenty of fish, particularly oily varieties. But there is a conflict here with current dietary advice guidelines issued by United States government nutritionists four years ago. This advisory⁷ concern the potential risk to fetal brain development from the build up of the trace pollutant⁸ methyl mercury resulting from women eating too much fish.

JOSEPH HEBLIN: When the advisory was created there was no consideration of the beneficial effects of fish. There was only calculation of huge important safety factors regarding avoiding trace amount of methyl mercury. Now, we tested that balance in the Alice box study and used fish as the unit, not how much methyl mercury, not how much, you know, Omega-3 but fish. And found that when you look overall at fish intake⁹ the beneficial effects of fish far out weight the detrimental¹⁰ effects of the methyl mercury. Such that when women were following the US advisory of 2004 it actually was detrimental to their children and put their children at greater risk of low IQ and behavioral problems.

REPORTER: Has that now been recognized by the powers that be?

JOSEPH HEBLIN: Um, it is under intense study and review currently, by the Food and Drug Administration in the US. And there have been recommendations by international bodies of seafood¹¹ inspectors¹² and scientists, the international recommendations being reviewed. Our estimate is that, um, the level of the US advisory is to eat not more that 340 grams of seafood per week for pregnant women, that being the case, the estimate is that, this will, um, provide a mean benefit of avoiding methyl mercury of about 0.009 IQ points.

REPORTER: Pretty insignificant¹³.

JOSEPH HEBLIN: And the gain of IQ points in eating fish is about 2.1 IQ points.

记者：约瑟夫·赫本林认为人体在任何时期都需要充足的omega-3脂肪酸。这在胎儿发育时期尤其重要。在英国布里斯托尔大学所做的鸟类纵向研究的基础上赫本林医生得出了这个结论。1991年14500位孕妇参加了这项试验。多年后科学家们已经从当年的孕妇和她们的孩子那搜集到了大量的数据。

约瑟夫·赫本林：去年年底我们发表的一篇论文中指出食鱼较多的女性所生的孩子在7到8岁时智力最高。而且，食鱼较多的女性所生的孩子在7到8岁时有最好的动作姿态。这些孩子在与同龄人配合及社交方面表现较好，也较少出现行为紊乱或暴力等问题。

记者：那些食鱼最多的母亲所生的综合素质最优异的孩子与那些食鱼最少的母亲所生出的有严重智力及行为障碍的孩子相比，他们之间有多大的区别？

约瑟夫·赫本林：大致上而言，对于那些食鱼最多的女性的孩子，只有14%到15%的孩子智力不太高，14%的孩子行为表现不优异。但对于食鱼最少的女性的孩子，则有32%的有四分位数的智力，并且有不佳的行为表现。14%与32%之间是有差距的。由于对孩子和他们的母亲进行了十分细致的分析，我们可以肯定食鱼效应是否真的取决于食鱼，还是母亲的素养，或是摄取肉馅饼、蔬菜及水果或者儿童成长期间的家庭社交冲突或者其它影响食鱼效果的因素等等。但我们确信行为与智力上的缺陷是由怀孕期间食鱼相对不足而引起的。

记者：但仍没有证据显示omega-3脂肪酸的摄入是必要的。

约瑟夫·赫本林：我们写这篇论文并不是为了证明这个。我们认为它起到了很大的重要，但显而易见的是鱼中所含的其它营养物质也做出了贡献。

记者：约瑟夫·赫本林在做了各种研究后提倡孕妇食用充足的鱼，尤其是那些含油较多的鱼类。但这与美国政府营养学家在四年前所发表的当前饮食建议指南产生冲突。这篇指南中提到了吃鱼太多所引起的痕量污染金属汞的堆积可能会对胎儿脑部发育造成不良影响。

约瑟夫·赫本林：在编写这本指南时人们都忽视了鱼的益处。里面只有为避免痕量金属汞堆积而涉及到的各种重要安全系数。现在我们在爱丽丝·博科思的研究中进行了权衡，并且在权衡中以鱼为单位，而非金属汞或omega-3脂肪酸的含量。通过权衡我们发现，从整体上看食鱼，其益处远远大于金属汞的害处。因此当女性们都遵从2004年出版的美国建议指南时，这种不利的行为使她们的孩子冒着低智商与行为障碍等风险。

记者：这是否通过了权威机构的认可呢？

约瑟夫·赫本林：目前美国食物和药品管理处正对此进行紧密的研究。国际机构的海产检查员与科学家们提出了很多建议，这些建议都在接受审查。我们估计美国建议指南的标准是孕妇每周不能食用超过340克的海味，这么做只是为了因避免痕量金属汞所带来只有0.009个智力点的微小益处。

记者：的确很小。

约瑟夫·赫本林：但吃鱼会增加2.1个智力点。

1 enrolled   

adj.入学登记了的v.[亦作enrol]( enroll的过去式和过去分词 )；登记，招收，使入伍（或入会、入学等），参加，成为成员；记入名册；卷起，包起

参考例句：

• They have been studying hard from the moment they enrolled. 从入学时起，他们就一直努力学习。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He enrolled with an employment agency for a teaching position. 他在职业介绍所登了记以谋求一个教师的职位。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 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。

3 disorders   

n.混乱( disorder的名词复数 )；凌乱；骚乱；（身心、机能）失调

参考例句：

• Reports of anorexia and other eating disorders are on the increase. 据报告，厌食症和其他饮食方面的功能紊乱发生率正在不断增长。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The announcement led to violent civil disorders. 这项宣布引起剧烈的骚乱。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 pregnancy   

n.怀孕，怀孕期

参考例句：

• Early pregnancy is often accompanied by nausea.怀孕早期常有恶心的现象。
• Smoking during pregnancy increases the risk of miscarriage.怀孕期吸烟会增加流产的危险。

5 purport   

n.意义，要旨，大要；v.意味著，做为...要旨，要领是...

参考例句：

• Many theories purport to explain growth in terms of a single cause.许多理论都标榜以单一的原因解释生长。
• Her letter may purport her forthcoming arrival.她的来信可能意味着她快要到了。

6 nutrients   

n.（食品或化学品）营养物，营养品( nutrient的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a lack of essential nutrients 基本营养的缺乏
• Nutrients are absorbed into the bloodstream. 营养素被吸收进血液。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 advisory   

adj.劝告的，忠告的，顾问的，提供咨询

参考例句：

• I have worked in an advisory capacity with many hospitals.我曾在多家医院做过顾问工作。
• He was appointed to the advisory committee last month.他上个月获任命为顾问委员会委员。

8 pollutant   

n.污染物质，散布污染物质者

参考例句：

• Coal itself is a heavy pollutant.煤本身就是一种严重的污染物。
• Carbon dioxide may not be a typical air pollutant.二氧化碳可能不是一种典型的污染物。

9 intake   

n.吸入，纳入；进气口，入口

参考例句：

• Reduce your salt intake.减少盐的摄入量。
• There was a horrified intake of breath from every child.所有的孩子都害怕地倒抽了一口凉气。

10 detrimental   

adj.损害的，造成伤害的

参考例句：

• We know that heat treatment is detrimental to milk.我们知道加热对牛奶是不利的。
• He wouldn't accept that smoking was detrimental to health.他不相信吸烟有害健康。

11 seafood   

n.海产食品，海味，海鲜

参考例句：

• There's an excellent seafood restaurant near here.离这儿不远有家非常不错的海鲜馆。
• Shrimps are a popular type of seafood.小虾是比较普遍的一种海味。

12 inspectors   

n.检查员( inspector的名词复数 )；（英国公共汽车或火车上的）查票员；（警察）巡官；检阅官

参考例句：

• They got into the school in the guise of inspectors. 他们假装成视察员进了学校。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Inspectors checked that there was adequate ventilation. 检查员已检查过，通风良好。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 insignificant   

adj.无关紧要的，可忽略的，无意义的

参考例句：

• In winter the effect was found to be insignificant.在冬季，这种作用是不明显的。
• This problem was insignificant compared to others she faced.这一问题与她面临的其他问题比较起来算不得什么。