减肥新发现 要想瘦吃辣椒

 　　It's long been thought that chillies can help us lose weight.

　　很长时间以来大多数人都觉的辣椒能帮助减肥。

　　Now, new research has proved the fiery¹ food can aid weight loss by speeding up metabolism².

　　目前一项最新研究确实证实了这种说法：辛辣类食物确实能通过加快新陈代谢来帮助减肥。

　　A study found capsaicin – the ingredient that gives chilli peppers their heat - could help burn off fat in the body.

　　该研究发现，辣椒中所含的辣椒素能够帮助燃烧体内脂肪。

　　The temptation to eat fatty foods is often so strong that, for many, they can't resist eating fatty or sugary foods even if they are trying to cut down on calories.

　　脂肪含量高的食物通常都很有诱惑力，这让正在减肥的人非常苦恼，因为总会忍不住吃那些含糖量高或含脂肪量高的食物。

　　减肥新发现 要想瘦吃辣椒

　　Now, researchers believe capsaicin could provide a solution to this problem; speeding up the metabolism without the need to restrict the diet.

　　现在，研究者们认为辣椒素可以解决这苦恼：让人在无需限制饮食的情况下加速体内新陈代谢过程。

　　University of Wyoming researchers found capsaicin may stimulate³ the body to burn energy and create heat (a process known as thermogenesis) – burning off calories in the process.

　　美国怀俄明州大学的研究人员发现，辣椒素能够刺激身体消耗能量并产生热量（这个过程叫做生热作用），以此来燃烧卡路里。

　　It does this by activating⁴ receptors in the body which set off the process of energy burning.

　　这个过程是通过激活体内的感受器来完成的。

　　These receptors are found in white and brown fat cells.

　　这些感受器在人体的白色脂肪和棕色脂肪中都存在。

　　In the body, white fat cells soak up calories and store them as fat – the dreaded⁵ type visible in pot bellies⁶, love handles and wobbly thighs⁷ that is the enemy of dieters.

　　人体中的白色脂肪负责吸收卡路里并将其储存为脂肪，这些脂肪在我们的小肚子上、手臂上、大腿上等等地方都能看到，它们堪称减肥者的天敌。

　　It is known as ‘bad’ fat for this reason.

　　所以，白色脂肪又被称为“坏”脂肪。

　　Brown fat, found in small amounts on the shoulders and neck, actually burns fat to heat the body – and is therefore known as ‘good’ fat.

　　而棕色脂肪，少量地存在于人的肩膀和颈部，功能是燃烧脂肪为身体提供热量，因此被称为“好”脂肪。

　　The researchers found that capsaicin in the diet was able to stimulate a receptor called potential vanilloid 1 (TRPV1) channel protein.

　　研究者们发现饮食中增加辣椒素的摄入能够刺激一种叫做TRPV1的感受器。

　　Activating this receptor suppresses obesity⁸ associated with a high-fat diet, the researchers found.

　　这种感受器的激活能够抑制因摄入过多脂肪而导致的肥胖。

　　They believe this is because it induces ‘bad’ white fat cells to become energy-burning ‘good’ brown fat cells.

　　研究者们认为，这是因为感受器的激活能够诱导“坏”脂肪变成能够燃烧热量的“好”脂肪。

　　The researchers carried out the study on one group of wild mice, and another group of mice who had been genetically⁹ engineered to lack the TRPV1 Receptor.

　　这项研究是在一组野生小白鼠和一组通过基因技术去除其体内的TRPV1感受器的小白鼠身上进行的。

　　They fed both mice a high fat diet, 0.01 per cent was made up of capsaicin.

　　研究者给两组小白鼠喂食脂肪含量较高的食物，其中辣椒素含量为0.01%。

　　Capsaicin prevented the weight gain associated with eating a high fat diet in the wild mice, but not the mice that lacked TRPV1.

　　结果显示，辣椒素抑制了野生小白鼠因摄入高脂肪量而增加的体重，但对缺少TRPV1感受器的小白鼠没有效果。

　　It did this without having any effect on how much food or water the mice consumed.

　　而且这种结果与两组小白鼠摄入的食物或水的量多少没有关系。

　　‘It did significantly increase the metabolic¹⁰ activity and energy expenditure¹¹ in wild type mice fed a high-fat diet, but not for mice that genetically lack TRPV1,’ researcher Vivek Krishnan, of University of Wyoming’s School of Pharmacy¹² said.

　　俄明州大学药学院的研究者维韦克·克里希纳说：“野生小白鼠的新陈代谢活动及能量消耗过程明显加快，但缺少TRPV1感受器的小白鼠却没有这种变化。”

　　This is because the fiery ingredient induces ‘bad’ white fat to become ‘good’, energy-burning brown fat and also stimulates¹³ the body to create heat, he added.

　　他表示，这就是因为辣椒素促使“坏”的白色脂肪变成了“好”的、能够燃烧能量的棕色脂肪，同时刺激身体产生热量。

　　These steps burn off calories and counteract¹⁴ obesity.

　　这些过程燃烧了卡路里、阻碍了体重的增加。

　　This may help to prevent and manage obesity and other related health complications such as Type 2 diabetes¹⁵, high blood pressure, and cardiovascular diseases, the researchers said.

　　研究者称，这还可以有效预防和控制肥胖及由肥胖引发的诸如二型糖尿病、高血压、心血管等疾病。

　　However, they added this effect has not yet been demonstrated in carefully-controlled clinical trials.

　　但是，目前这项研究还没有在严格控制的临床试验中被证实。

　　Next, the researchers want to further understand the mechanism¹⁶ by which capsaicin prevents obesity, and carry out more trials to further prove that it can help manage weight.

　　下一步，研究者们会更加深入地研究辣椒素通过加速新陈代谢过程抑制肥胖的过程，并会进行更多的试验来证明辣椒素确实能够控制体重。

1 fiery   

adj.燃烧着的，火红的；暴躁的；激烈的

参考例句：

• She has fiery red hair.她有一头火红的头发。
• His fiery speech agitated the crowd.他热情洋溢的讲话激动了群众。

2 metabolism   

n.新陈代谢

参考例句：

• After years of dieting,Carol's metabolism was completely out of whack.经过数年的节食，卡罗尔的新陈代谢完全紊乱了。
• All living matter undergoes a process of metabolism.生物都有新陈代谢。

3 stimulate   

vt.刺激，使兴奋；激励，使…振奋

参考例句：

• Your encouragement will stimulate me to further efforts.你的鼓励会激发我进一步努力。
• Success will stimulate the people for fresh efforts.成功能鼓舞人们去作新的努力。

4 activating   

活动的，活性的

参考例句：

• "I didn't say we'd got to stop activating the masses! “我并没说就此不发动！ 来自子夜部分
• Presumably both the very small size and activating influence of fluorine atoms contribute to this exception. 这大概是由于氟原子半径小和活性高这两个原因的影响，氟原子对这种例外做出了贡献。

5 dreaded   

adj.令人畏惧的；害怕的v.害怕，恐惧，担心( dread的过去式和过去分词)

参考例句：

• The dreaded moment had finally arrived. 可怕的时刻终于来到了。
• He dreaded having to spend Christmas in hospital. 他害怕非得在医院过圣诞节不可。 来自《用法词典》

6 bellies   

n.肚子( belly的名词复数 )；腹部；（物体的）圆形或凸起部份；腹部…形的

参考例句：

• They crawled along on their bellies. 他们匍匐前进。
• starving children with huge distended bellies 鼓着浮肿肚子的挨饿儿童

7 thighs   

n.股，大腿( thigh的名词复数 )；食用的鸡（等的）腿

参考例句：

• He's gone to London for skin grafts on his thighs. 他去伦敦做大腿植皮手术了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The water came up to the fisherman's thighs. 水没到了渔夫的大腿。 来自《简明英汉词典》

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 genetically   

adv.遗传上

参考例句：

• All the bees in the colony are genetically related. 同一群体的蜜蜂都有亲缘关系。
• Genetically modified foods have already arrived on American dinner tables. 经基因改造加工过的食物已端上了美国人的餐桌。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 基因与食物

10 metabolic   

adj.新陈代谢的

参考例句：

• Impressive metabolic alternations have been undergone during embryogenesis.在胚胎发生期间经历了深刻的代谢变化。
• A number of intoxicants are associated with metabolic acidosis.许多毒性物质可引起代谢性酸中毒。

11 expenditure   

n.(时间、劳力、金钱等)支出；使用，消耗

参考例句：

• The entry of all expenditure is necessary.有必要把一切开支入账。
• The monthly expenditure of our family is four hundred dollars altogether.我们一家的开销每月共计四百元。

12 pharmacy   

n.药房，药剂学，制药业，配药业，一批备用药品

参考例句：

• She works at the pharmacy.她在药房工作。
• Modern pharmacy has solved the problem of sleeplessness.现代制药学已经解决了失眠问题。

13 stimulates   

v.刺激( stimulate的第三人称单数 )；激励；使兴奋；起兴奋作用，起刺激作用，起促进作用

参考例句：

• Exercise stimulates the body. 运动促进身体健康。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Alcohol stimulates the action of the heart. 酒刺激心脏的活动。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

14 counteract   

vt.对…起反作用，对抗，抵消

参考例句：

• The doctor gave him some medicine to counteract the effect of the poison.医生给他些药解毒。
• Our work calls for mutual support.We shouldn't counteract each other's efforts.工作要互相支持，不要互相拆台。

15 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。

16 mechanism   

n.机械装置；机构，结构

参考例句：

• The bones and muscles are parts of the mechanism of the body.骨骼和肌肉是人体的组成部件。
• The mechanism of the machine is very complicated.这台机器的结构是非常复杂的。