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Unit 8
Healthy Living
In-Class Reading
Set Your Body's Time Clock to Work for You
1 As the first rays of sunlight filter over the hills of California's Silicon Valley <1>, Charles Winget opens his eyes. It is barely 5 a.m., but Winget is eager to go. Meanwhile, his wife pulls up the covers and buries her face under the pillow. "For the past fifteen years," says Winget, "we've hardly ever gotten up together."
2 The Wingets' situation is not uncommon. Our bodies operate with the complexity of clocks, and like clocks, we all run at slightly different speeds <2>. Winget is a morning person. His wife is not at her best until after nightfall. Behavioral scientists long attributed such differences to personal eccentricities or early conditioning <3>. This thinking was challenged by a theory labeled chronobiology by physician-biologist Franz Halberg. In a Harvard University laboratory study, Dr Halberg found that certain blood cells varied predictably in number, depending on the time of day they were drawn from the body. The cell count <4> was higher at a given time of day and lower 12 hours later. He also discovered that the same patterns could be detected in heart and metabolic rates and body temperature.
3 Halberg's explanation: instead of performing at a steady, unchanging rate, our systems function on an approximately 25-hour cycle. Sometimes we are accelerating, sometimes slowing down. We achieve peak efficiency for only a limited time each day. Halberg dubbed these bodily cadences "circadian rhythms".
4 Much of the leading work in chronobiology is sponsored today by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Charles Winget, a NASA <5> research physiologist and authority on circadian rhythms, says that circadian principles have been applied to astronauts' work schedules on most of the space-shuttle flights.
5 The space-age research has many useful applications here on earth. Chronobiologists can tell you when to eat and still lose weight, what time of day you're best equipped to handle the toughest challenges, when to go to the dentist with your highest threshold of pain and when to exercise for maximum effect. Winget says, "It's a biological law of human efficiency: to achieve your best with the least effort, you have to coordinate the demands of your activities with your biological capacities."
6 Circadian patterns can be made to work for you. But you must first learn how to recognize them. Winget and his associates have developed the following approach to help you figure out your body's patterns.
7 Take your temperature one hour after getting up in the morning and then again at four-hour intervals throughout the day. Schedule your last reading as close to bedtime as possible. You should have five readings by the end of the day.
8 Now add your first, third and fifth readings and record this total. Then add your second and fourth readings and subtract this figure from the first total. That number will be an estimate of your body temperature in the middle of the night-consider it your sixth reading.
9 Now plot all six readings on graph paper <6>. The variations may seem extremely small-only one-tenth of a degree in some cases-but are significant. You'll probably find that your temperature will begin to rise between 3 a.m. and 6 a.m., reaching a peak sometime in the late morning or early afternoon. By evening the readings start to drop. They will steadily decline, reaching their nadir at around 2 a. m.
10 Of course, individual variations make all the difference. At what hour is your body temperature on the rise? When does it reach its highest point? Its lowest? Once you have familiarized yourself with your patterns, you can take advantage of chronobiology techniques to improve your health and productivity.
11 We do our best physical work when our rhythms are at their peak. In most people, this peak lasts about four hours. Schedule your most demanding activities when your temperature is highest.
12 For mental activities, the timetable is more complicated. Precision tasks, such as mathematical work, are best tackled when your temperature is on the rise. For most people, this is at 8 or 9 a. m. By contrast, reading and reflection are better pursued between 2 and 4 p. m., the time when body temperature usually begins to fall.
13 Breakfast should be your largest meal of the day for effective dieting. Calories burn faster one hour after we wake up than they do in the evening. During a six-year research project known as the Army Diet Study, Dr Halberg, chronobiologist Robert Sothern and research associate Erna Halberg monitored the food intake of two groups of men and women. Both ate only one, 2000-calorie meal a day, but one group ate their meal at breakfast and the other at dinner. "All the subjects lost weight eating breakfast," states Sothern. "Those who ate dinner either maintained or gained weight. "
14 If foods are processed differently at different times of day, certainly caffeine, alcohol and medicines will be too <7>. Aspirin compounds, for example, have the greatest potency in the morning, between 7 and 8. So does alcohol. They are least effective between 6 p. m. and midnight. Caffeine has the most impact around 3 in the afternoon. Charles Walker, dean of the College of Pharmacy at Florida A&M University <8>, explains, "Stimulants are most effective when you are normally active, and sedatives work best when you're naturally sedate or asleep."
15 Knowing your rhythms can also help overcome sleep problems. Consult your body-temperature chart. Your bedtime should coincide with the point at which your temperature is lowest. This is between 11 p.m. and 2 a.m. for most people.
16 Dr Michael Thorpy of the Sleep-Wake Disorders Center at Montefiore Medical Center in New York City offers other circadian sleep tips; go to bed at the same time every night and get up at the same time every morning, even on weekends. "Irregularity in sleep and waking times is the greatest cause of sleep problems," Dr Thorpy says. The best way to recover from a bad night's sleep is simply to resume your normal cycle. Beware of sleeping pills. "Most Sleeping pills won't work for periods longer than two weeks," warns Dr Thorpy. And there is real danger of drug accumulation in the blood.
17 Visit a doctor or dentist as early in the day or as late in the evening as possible, since your highest pain threshold is between 8 p.m. and 8 a.m.
18 Winget and fellow NASA chronobiologist Charles DeRoshia also offer advice to diminish the debilitating effects of jet lag: a week or so before departure begin adjusting your daily activities so that they coincide with the time schedule of your destination. Eat a small, high-protein low-carbohydrate meal just before your trip. Get plenty of sleep in the days before your trip. In flight, eat very little, drink lots of water and avoid alcohol and caffeinated drinks. When you arrive, walk around, talk to people, try to adapt to your environment. Before retiring, have a light meal, high in carbohydrates. Take a warm bath.
19 Knowing your body's patterns is no guarantee of good health. But what chronobiology reveals is the importance of regularity in all aspects of your life and of learning to act in synchronization with your body's natural rhythms. (1179 words)
Time taken: _______ minutes
Proper Names
Charles DeRoshia
（男子名）查尔斯.德罗西亚
Charles Walker
（男子名）查尔斯.沃克
Charles Winget
（男子名）查尔斯.温格特
Erna Halbeg
（女子名）厄娜.哈尔伯格
Florida
佛罗里达州（美国州名）
Franz Halberg
（男子名）弗朗兹.哈尔伯格
Michael Thorpy
（男子名）迈克尔.索佩
Montefiore
（地名）蒙蒂菲奥里
Robert Sothern
（男子名）罗伯特.萨森
New Words
administration
n.
1) a group of people who organize and supervise an institution 管理部门，行政机关
e.g. The college administration tried to keep tuition low.
2) the management or direction of the affairs of a business, government, etc. 管理
e.g. This university is under the administration of the Ministry of Education.
aeronautics
n. the science of the operation and flight of aircraft 航空学
aspirin
n. a medicine that reduces pain and fever 阿司匹林
astronaut
n. a person who travels through space in a space vehicle 宇航员
attribute
v. believe (something) to be the result or work of 把（某事）归因于，认为是......结果
e.g. I ) She was inclined to attribute all her troubles to a lack of understanding on the part of other people.
II) The discovery of electricity is attributed to Benjamin Franklin.
biologist *
n. someone engaged in the scientific study of living things 生物学家
e.g. The biologist collected samples from the river.
cadence
n. a regular beat of sound or rhythm 节奏，韵律
caffeinated
adj. 含咖啡因的
caffeine
n. a drug found in coffee or tea, which acts as a stimulant 咖啡因
chronobiologist
n. one who studies biological rhythms 时间生物学家
circadian
adj. (of changes in the body) related to a period of about 24 hours 生理节奏的
e.g. Flying from San Francisco to Rome has upset his circadian clock (体内的生物钟), so he feels as if it was the middle of the night.
coincide
v. happen at the same time or during the same period （在时间上）巧合，同时发生
e.g. I ) They could not go to the theater together because his free time never coincided with hers.
II) The Queen's visit has been planned to coincide with the school's 200th anniversary.
complexity *
n. the state of being complex 复杂（性）
e.g. It's a problem of great complexity.
dean
n. the head of a university faculty or department （大学）学院院长，系主任
e.g. She is the new dean of the Faculty of Sciences.
debilitating
adj. making (a person or a person's health) weak 使衰弱的
detect
v. find out or discover 发现，察觉
e.g. I ) The teacher detected some errors in Bob's composition.
II) Small quantities of poison were detected in the dead man's body.
disorder
n.
1) a problem or illness which affects someone's mind or body （身心、机能的）失调，紊乱
e.g. Eating the wrong food can cause a stomach disorder.
2) lack of order 混乱，无秩序
e.g. He always leaves his home in disorder.
dub
v. name humorously or descriptively 给......起绰号
e.g. Edinburgh was dubbed by some "the drug capital of Europe".
eccentricity
n. unusual behavior or habit 古怪，反常，怪癖
e.g. Bill has several eccentricities, but is generally friendly.
familiarize
v. cause someone to know someone or something 使熟悉
e.g. I ) Students are familiarized with a variety of methods.
II) Read the handbook to familiarize yourself with company policies.
filter
v.
1) come in faintly or slowly, either through a small or partly covered opening, or from a long distance away 透过
e.g. Light filtered into my kitchen through the soft, green shade of the honey locust tree （皂荚树）.
2) clean by passing through a filter 过滤
e.g. We should filter out all the dirt before using the water.
n. a device that cleans a fluid or gas that passes through it 滤器，过滤嘴
e.g. The filter of a cigarette helps prevent some of the tar （焦油）and nicotine （尼古丁） from entering the body.
graph
n. a drawing that uses a line or lines to show how two or more sets of measurements are related to each other 曲线图
e.g. This graph shows how the number of road accidents has increased over the last ten years.
intake
n. the amount taken in 吸入（数）量，纳入（数）量
e.g. If you want to lose weight, you should reduce your intake of fat and alcohol.
maximum
adj. the largest that is possible or allowed 最大值的，最大量的
e.g. I ) The maximum amount of time must be given to our overseas projects.
II ) What's the maximum amount of wine you're allowed to take through customs duty-free （免税）.
n. the largest number, amount, etc. 最大值，最大量
e.g. The criminal was sentenced to a maximum of 25 years in jail.
metabolic
adj. of, relating to, or based on metabolism 新陈代谢的
nadir
n. the lowest point 最低点
e.g. After he lost the election, his spirits sank to their nadir.
nightfall
n. the beginning of night; dusk 傍晚，黄昏
e.g. We gave up searching for the lost key at nightfall.
pharmacy
n. the study of the preparation of medicine or drugs 药剂学
physiologist *
n. a person who studies how the bodies of living things and their various parts work 生理学家
potency
n. power 效能，效力
precision
n. exactness 精确，准确
e.g. She doesn't express her thoughts with precision, so people often misunderstand what she says.
predictably *
adv. in a way that can be predicted 可预言地
e.g. The American tennis champion predictably beat the British newcomer in the second round of the championship.
principle
n.
1) general or fundamental law or rule 原理
e.g. The final examination covered basic principles of physics.
2) a truth or belief that is accepted as a base for reasoning or action 原则
e.g. One of the principles of this dictionary is that definitions should be given in simple language.
3) a rule of behavior or conduct 准则，为人之道
e.g. The ambitious leader sacrificed his principles to gain power.
sedate
adj. never showing hurry or excitement 安静的，镇静的
sedative
n. medicine with a calming effect 镇静剂
silicon
n. a simple substance that is nonmetallic and is found in combined forms in nature in great quantities 硅
sponsor
v. act as a sponsor for 赞助
e.g. Our research was sponsored by a well-known businessman.
n. a person or company that pays for a show, broadcast, sports event, etc. 赞助人，赞助商
e.g. The opera house (歌剧院) could not survive with commercial sponsors.
stimulant *
n. a chemical that promotes energy and attentiveness 兴奋剂
subtract
v. take (a part or amount) from something larger 减去，扣除
e.g. Subtract 10 and add 1, what is the result?
threshold
n. a limit on a scale 极限
e.g. The sound was so loud it was on the threshold of pain. 声音大得开始令人无法忍受。
Phrases and Expressions
at one's best
in the best state or form 处于最佳状态
e.g. I ) Miss Blockey was at her best when she played the piano.
II) I'm not at my best in the morning.
attribute ... to...
believe (something) to be the result or work of 把某事归因于，认为是......结果
e.g. He attributes his success to hard work and a bit of luck.
figure out
work out or determine 想出
e.g. The cost of the repairs on the house will need to be figured out precisely.
beware of
be very careful about 当心，注意
e.g. He told us to beware of pickpockets.
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