Saint John's Wort and Depression

44 圣·约翰草并不能有效治疗情绪低落

DATE=5-3-01
TITLE=SCIENCE REPORT- Saint¹ John's Wort and Depression
BYLINE=Nancy Steinbach

(Start at 59")This is the VOA Special English Science Report.
American researchers say a new study has found that a (1) substance made from the plant known as Saint John's (2) wort is not effective in treating serious （3）depression.
Depression is a feeling of deep sadness that continues for at least fourteen days.  People who are depressed² may have decreased energy, feelings of guilt³ or thoughts of killing⁴ themselves.  They may (4) experience changes in how much they eat or sleep. They may be unable to work or care for their families. Some kinds of depression are more (5) severe than others. 
 Saint John's wort has become very popular in the United States to treat depression.  It is sold in many stores.  Researchers say the latest study is the first large scientific trial of Saint John's wort in patients suffering serious depression.  It involved two- hundred people at eleven medical centers in the United States.  
The patients received either Saint John's wort or an inactive substance. After eight weeks, the researchers found no real difference between the group taking Saint John's wort and the group taking the inactive substance.
Richard Shelton is a professor at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, (6) Tennessee.  He led the study and published the results in the Journal⁵ of the American Medical （7）Association.  He said the study means that people suffering depression should not take Saint John's wort.  They should go to a doctor and receive medicine that is known to help depression.
The new results dispute⁶ the findings⁷ of at least twenty earlier studies.  These studies showed that Saint John's wort did help people (8) suffering a less serious kind of depression. So Doctor Shelton and the other researchers re-examined their study results.  They looked for any effects from Saint John's wort on less serious depression.  
Again they found that the substance was not effective.  Doctor Shelton said no proof⁸ exists to support the use of Saint John's wort for any kind of depression.  But he also said more studies are needed to confirm the findings of his group.
He said a larger study is being done at the National Institutes of Health near Washington, D-C.  It is examining the effects of three substances on depression.  They are Saint John's wort, an inactive substance and a popular medicine for depression.  Results of that study are expected later this year.
This VOA Special English Science Report was written by Nancy Steinbach.

注释：
（1） substance[ 5sQbstEns ]n.物质, 实质, 主旨
（2） wort[ wE:t ]n.麦芽汁, 植物
（3） depression[ di5preFEn ]n.沮丧, 消沉, 低气压, 低压
（4） experience[ iks5piEriEns ]n. v.经验, 体验
（5） severe[ si5viE ]adj.严厉的, 严格的
（6） Tennessee[ 7tene5si:, -nE- ]n.田纳西州
（7） association[ E7sEusi5eiFEn ]n.协会, 联合
（8） suffering[ 5sQfEriN ]n.苦楚, 受难adj.受苦的, 患病的

1 saint   

n.圣徒；基督教徒；vt.成为圣徒，把...视为圣徒

参考例句：

• He was made a saint.他被封为圣人。
• The saint had a lowly heart.圣人有谦诚之心。

2 depressed   

adj.沮丧的，抑郁的，不景气的，萧条的

参考例句：

• When he was depressed,he felt utterly divorced from reality.他心情沮丧时就感到完全脱离了现实。
• His mother was depressed by the sad news.这个坏消息使他的母亲意志消沉。

3 guilt   

n.犯罪；内疚；过失，罪责

参考例句：

• She tried to cover up her guilt by lying.她企图用谎言掩饰自己的罪行。
• Don't lay a guilt trip on your child about schoolwork.别因为功课责备孩子而使他觉得很内疚。

4 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

5 journal   

n.日志，日记；议事录；日记帐；杂志，定期刊物

参考例句：

• He kept a journal during his visit to Japan.他在访问日本期间坚持记日记。
• He got a job as editor of a trade journal.他找到了一份当商业杂志编辑的工作。

6 dispute   

n.争端，分歧；v.争论，争吵，辩论，辩驳

参考例句：

• They are trying to find a way of settling the dispute.他们正设法寻找解决争端的办法。
• The parties to the dispute should be more polite to each other.争执双方应相互礼貌些。

7 findings   

n.发现物( finding的名词复数 )；调查（或研究）的结果；（陪审团的）裁决

参考例句：

• It behoves us to study these findings carefully. 我们理应认真研究这些发现。
• Their findings have been widely disseminated . 他们的研究成果已经广为传播。

8 proof   

adj.防...的，耐...的，能防护；n.校样，证据，证明；vt.检验，给...做防护措施

参考例句：

• He is living proof of the wonders of modern medicine.他是当代医学奇迹的活证明。
• The proof was fished up from some old papers.校样在旧文件中被找到了。