VOA慢速英语2012 Health Report - Why Getting Dirty Can Be Healthy for Children

Health Report - Why Getting Dirty Can Be Healthy for Children

健康报道 - 早期接触细菌对儿童健康有利

This is the VOA Special English Health Report.

这里是美国之音慢速英语健康报道。

A new study suggests that early exposure to germs strengthens the immune system. That means letting children get a little dirty might be good for their health later in life.

一项新的研究表明，早期接触细菌能增强免疫系统。这意味着让孩子脏一点可能对他们以后的健康有利。

The study involved laboratory mice. It found that adult mice raised in a germ-free environment were more likely to develop allergies¹, asthma² and other autoimmune disorders⁴. There are more than eighty disorders where cells that normally defend the body instead attack tissues and organs.

这项研究涉及了实验小鼠。研究发现，在无菌环境下长大的成年鼠更容易患上过敏症、哮喘和其它自身免疫性疾病。在超过80种免疫失调疾病中，通常保护身体的细胞会转而攻击组织和器官。

They include rheumatoid arthritis⁵, which attacks the joints⁶; Crohn's disease, an inflammatory bowel⁷ condition; and juvenile⁸ diabetes⁹. Hay fever, a common allergy¹⁰, is also an autoimmune disorder³.

这些疾病包括攻击关节的类风湿关节炎、肠道炎症性疾病克罗恩病以及青少年糖尿病。一种常见的过敏症，花粉热，也是一种自身免疫性疾病。

Richard Blumberg is a professor at Harvard Medical School in Boston, Massachusetts. He says in nineteen eighty-nine, medical researchers sought to explain these diseases with what they called the "hygiene¹¹ hypothesis." They proposed that the increasing use of antibacterial soaps and other products, especially early in life, could weaken immune systems.

理查德·布隆伯格(Richard Blumberg)是位于马萨诸塞州波士顿市的哈佛医学院的一名教授。他说，在1989年，医学研究人员曾试图用他们所谓的“卫生假说”来解释这些疾病。这些研究人员提出，越来越多地使用抗菌肥皂和其它产品，特别是在生命早期，可能会削弱免疫系统。

RICHARD BLUMBERG: "The hypothesis has stated or suggested that early-life exposure to microbes is a very important determinant of later life sensitivity to allergic¹² and so-called autoimmune diseases, such as hay fever, asthma, inflammatory bowel disease and others."

布隆伯格：“该假说宣称或暗示，生命早期暴露在微生物中，是生命后期对过敏症的敏感性和所谓的自身免疫系统疾病，如花粉热、哮喘、倡导炎症性疾病等的重要决定因素。”

Now, Dr. Blumberg and a team have what they say is the first biological evidence to link early exposure to germs to stronger adult immune systems. They say this exposure could prevent the development of some autoimmune diseases.

目前，布隆伯格博士及团队得到了他们所说的把早期接触细菌与增强成年人免疫系统联系起来的第一份生物证据。他们表示，这种接触可以防止某些自身免疫性疾病的发展。

In the adult germ-free mice, they found that inflammation in the lungs and colon¹³ was caused by so-called killer¹⁴ T cells. These normally fight infection. But they became overactive and targeted healthy tissue -- an autoimmune condition seen in asthma and a disease called ulcerative colitis.

在成年无菌鼠身上，他们发现肺部和结肠的炎症是所谓的杀手T细胞引起的。杀手T细胞通常对抗感染，但它们变得过度活跃就会针对健康组织，也就是哮喘和溃疡性结肠炎中可以看到的自身免疫状况。

Dr. Blumberg says the mice raised in a normal environment did not have the same reaction. He says their immune systems had been "educated" by early exposure to germs.

布隆伯格博士说，在正常环境下长大的小鼠没有同样的反应，它们的免疫系统已经经历过早期接触细菌的“洗礼”。

RICHARD BLUMBERG: "What was really most remarkable¹⁵ to us was the fact that once the education event provided by the microbes occurred in early life, it was durable¹⁶ and lasted throughout the life of the animal."

Rates of autoimmune disorders are rising worldwide, but mostly in wealthier, industrialized countries.

全球范围内，自身免疫性疾病比例不断上升，但主要发生在富裕的工业化国家。

RICHARD BLUMBERG: "I think one obvious question, for example, that’s raised by these studies is the early life use of antibiotics¹⁷ and whether we need to be more careful in their prescribing."

布隆伯格：“我认为这些研究提出的一个明显的问题就是，生命早期阶段抗生素的使用以及我们在处方上是否需要更加谨慎。”

Rob Dunn is a professor of ecology and evolutionary¹⁸ biology at North Carolina State University in Raleigh. He says the new study does not mean people should stop washing.

罗布·邓恩是位于罗利市的北卡罗来纳州立大学的一名生态学及进化生物学教授。他说，这项新研究并不意味着人们应当停止清洗身体。

ROB DUNN: "Wash your hands, but don't do it with antimicrobial soap. Let your kids play in a reasonable amount of dirt and get outside and get exposed to a diversity of things."

邓恩：“洗手，但不要使用抗菌肥皂。让您的孩子在合适数量的灰尘中玩耍，去到外面，去接触多元化事物。”

The study appears in the journal Science.

该研究发表在《科学》杂志上。

And that's the VOA Special English Health Report. I'm Steve Ember.

___

Contributing: Jessica Berman

1 allergies   

n.[医]过敏症；[口]厌恶，反感；（对食物、花粉、虫咬等的）过敏症( allergy的名词复数 )；变态反应，变应性

参考例句：

• Food allergies can result in an enormous variety of different symptoms. 食物过敏会引发很多不同的症状。 来自辞典例句
• Let us, however, examine one of the most common allergies; hayfever. 现在让我们来看看最常见的变态反应的一种--枯草热。 来自辞典例句

2 asthma   

n.气喘病，哮喘病

参考例句：

• I think he's having an asthma attack.我想他现在是哮喘病发作了。
• Its presence in allergic asthma is well known.它在过敏性气喘中的存在是大家很熟悉的。

3 disorder   

n.紊乱，混乱；骚动，骚乱；疾病，失调

参考例句：

• When returning back,he discovered the room to be in disorder.回家后，他发现屋子里乱七八糟。
• It contained a vast number of letters in great disorder.里面七零八落地装着许多信件。

4 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》

5 arthritis   

n.关节炎

参考例句：

• Rheumatoid arthritis has also been linked with the virus.风湿性关节炎也与这种病毒有关。
• He spent three months in the hospital with acute rheumatic arthritis.他患急性风湿性关节炎，在医院住了三个月。

6 joints   

接头( joint的名词复数 )； 关节； 公共场所（尤指价格低廉的饮食和娱乐场所） （非正式）； 一块烤肉 （英式英语）

参考例句：

• Expansion joints of various kinds are fitted on gas mains. 各种各样的伸缩接头被安装在煤气的总管道上了。
• Expansion joints of various kinds are fitted on steam pipes. 各种各样的伸缩接头被安装在蒸气管道上了。

7 bowel   

n.肠(尤指人肠)；内部，深处

参考例句：

• Irritable bowel syndrome seems to affect more women than men.女性比男性更易患肠易激综合征。
• Have you had a bowel movement today?你今天有排便吗？

8 juvenile   

n.青少年，少年读物；adj.青少年的，幼稚的

参考例句：

• For a grown man he acted in a very juvenile manner.身为成年人，他的行为举止显得十分幼稚。
• Juvenile crime is increasing at a terrifying rate.青少年犯罪正在以惊人的速度增长。

9 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。

10 allergy   

n.(因食物、药物等而引起的)过敏症

参考例句：

• He developed an allergy to pollen.他对花粉过敏。
• The patient had an allergy to penicillin.该患者对青霉素过敏。

11 hygiene   

n.健康法，卫生学 （a.hygienic）

参考例句：

• Their course of study includes elementary hygiene and medical theory.他们的课程包括基础卫生学和医疗知识。
• He's going to give us a lecture on public hygiene.他要给我们作关于公共卫生方面的报告。

12 allergic   

adj.过敏的，变态的

参考例句：

• Alice is allergic to the fur of cats.艾丽斯对猫的皮毛过敏。
• Many people are allergic to airborne pollutants such as pollen.许多人对空气传播的污染物过敏，比如花粉。

13 colon   

n.冒号，结肠，直肠

参考例句：

• Here,too,the colon must be followed by a dash.这里也是一样，应当在冒号后加破折号。
• The colon is the locus of a large concentration of bacteria.结肠是大浓度的细菌所在地。

14 killer   

n.杀人者，杀人犯，杀手，屠杀者

参考例句：

• Heart attacks have become Britain's No.1 killer disease.心脏病已成为英国的头号致命疾病。
• The bulk of the evidence points to him as her killer.大量证据证明是他杀死她的。

15 remarkable   

adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的

参考例句：

• She has made remarkable headway in her writing skills.她在写作技巧方面有了长足进步。
• These cars are remarkable for the quietness of their engines.这些汽车因发动机没有噪音而不同凡响。

16 durable   

adj.持久的，耐久的

参考例句：

• This raincoat is made of very durable material.这件雨衣是用非常耐用的料子做的。
• They frequently require more major durable purchases.他们经常需要购买耐用消费品。

17 antibiotics   

n.（用作复数）抗生素；（用作单数）抗生物质的研究；抗生素，抗菌素( antibiotic的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• the discovery of antibiotics in the 20th century 20世纪抗生素的发现
• The doctor gave me a prescription for antibiotics. 医生给我开了抗生素。

18 evolutionary   

adj.进化的；演化的，演变的；[生]进化论的

参考例句：

• Life has its own evolutionary process.生命有其自身的进化过程。
• These are fascinating questions to be resolved by the evolutionary studies of plants.这些十分吸引人的问题将在研究植物进化过程中得以解决。