Don: Oh, no, Ya?l, I think I'm having a medical emergency. Quick! Call an ambulance.

 

　　Ya?l: A medical emergency, Don? Are you sure? You look fine to me!

 

　　D: But I'm not. This morning, I had a terrible stomach ache. And now, now look at my tongue. Oh, it's all black. Surely, I'm dying, and you don't even care!

 

　　Y: Relax, Don! Of course I care. But you really dying?

 

　　D: But my tongue......

 

　　Y: I can tell you exactly what the problem is!

 

　　D: You can? But you are not a doctor!

 

　　Y: But I do read the contrary indications before taking medicine.

 

　　D: Un-huh!

 

　　Y: You said you had a stomachache, right? And I'll bet you 5 dollars that you have took some Pepto Bismol for it?

 

　　D: Wow! You must be psychic. How do you know?

 

　　Y: Well, the active ingredient in Pepto Bismol is a compound called bismuth subsalicylate.

 

　　D: Bismuth subsalicylate, so?

 

　　Y: This compound has anti-diarrheal, anti-bacterial, and antacid effect on the digestive tract.

 

　　D: Which is why Pepto helps with stomach discomfort.

 

　　Y: Right, but the thing is, when the bismuth combines with the trace amounts of sulfur in your saliva and in your gastrointestinal tract, it reacts to form a black substance called bismuth sulfide.

 

　　D: Bismuth sulfide, sounds dangerous!

 

　　Y: It isn't. But that's where the discoloration on your tongue comes from. And bismuth sulfide can also temporarily darken the stool. It’s a common enough side-effect that it’s listed in the package information, which you really should get in the habit of reading.

 

　　In a couple of days everything will back to normal.

 

　　D: Ya?l, you saved my life.

 

　　Y: Not really...

 

　　黑舌头与胃痛

 

　　Don: 我的天呐，Y，我想我是染上什么急病啦！赶快！叫救护车！

 

　　Ya?l: 急病？你确定？你看起来气色不错啊！

 

　　D: 我不觉得我很好啊。今天早上我胃疼得特别厉害。可现在…现在，你看我的舌头。整个舌头都是黑的！好吧，我都要死了，你一点也不关心我！

 

　　Y: Don，别太紧张好不好！我绝对是关心你的，但你确定你就要“去”了？

 

　　D: 可我的舌头……

 

　　Y: 我可以告诉你你的舌头究竟是怎么回事！

 

　　D: 你？可你并不是医生啊！

 

　　Y: 但是我每次吃药之前都会看说明书，看服药后会有什么副作用。

 

　　D: 嗯哼！

 

　　Y: 你说你胃痛，对吧？我和你赌5美元，你是不是服用了碱式水杨酸铋口服混悬液？

 

　　D: 神啦！你怎么知道的呢？

 

　　Y: 碱式水杨酸铋中的有效成分为一种叫做碱式水杨酸盐的化合物。

 

　　D: 碱式水杨酸盐，所以说？

 

　　Y: 这种化合物作用于消化道，具有抗腹泻、抗菌以及解酸的作用。

 

　　D: 这就是为什么碱式水杨酸铋能缓解胃部不适。

 

　　Y: 嗯。但是，铋与唾液和胃肠道中微量的硫作用会生成一种黑色的物质——硫化铋。

 

　　D: 硫化铋，听起来都觉得很危险！

 

　　Y: 这倒不是。但硫化铋就是将你的舌头变黑的罪魁祸首。而且，硫化铋还会使排泄物变黑。这是很常见的一种副作用，药品的包装盒上就列出来了的。所以啊，在吃药前一定要养成看说明的好习惯。放心了吧，要不了几天就恢复正常了。

 

　　D: Ya?l，你救了我一命啊。

 

　　Y: 怎么会……