环球英语 — 133：Preventing Anaemia in Newborn Babies

　　Voice 1
Welcome to Spotlight¹. I’m Liz Waid.
Voice 2
And I’m Mike Procter. Spotlight uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.
Voice 1
Imagine a baby boy. Let’s call him Manuel. Manuel is born in a poor area of Mexico. He is his parent’s third [3rd] child. Manuel’s mother has been tired a lot during her pregnancy². But she has been working hard to prepare for her new baby.
Imagine that Manuel is born three [3] weeks early. He is a little small. But, he seems healthy. A few months after birth, Manuel’s parents observe that he does not cry very often. He seems tired a lot and he rarely moves. His parents know that something must be wrong. But, they do not know what it is.
Manuel’s situation is common all around the world. In fact, up to half [1/2] of all children and pregnant³ women in developing countries will suffer in a similar way. They do not have enough iron in their diets.
Voice 2
This particular condition is called Iron Deficiency⁴ Anaemia. Iron Deficiency Anaemia is not always life-threatening. But, if people do not treat it, it can become very dangerous. You may have heard a Spotlight program about anaemia before. In that program we told about the effects lack of iron can have on a person’s body.
Voice 1
Lack of iron may make a person feel tired and weak. His skin may look lighter⁵ than normal. Or he may have trouble breathing. Lack of iron damages a person’s immune⁶ system. This is the system inside a person’s body that protects him from sickness. Lack of iron can affect the brain too. A child who lacks iron in his diet may not have a correctly developed brain. The effects can influence a child through his whole life.
Voice 2
Anaemia in children and babies is a cause for concern. And often treatment can cost a lot of money. It can require special vitamins or medicines, or even surgery on the baby. But treatment for anaemia can begin even at the baby’s birth. There may be a way for a newborn baby to avoid becoming anaemic. It is low cost. And it is very easy. In fact, it is as simple as waiting two [2] minutes.
Voice 1
During pregnancy, a mother’s body provides everything a new baby will need. Her blood contains the vitamins, minerals and other nutrients⁷, or healthy substances, for her baby. The baby receives these substances through a temporary organ called the placenta.
Voice 2
The placenta surrounds the forming baby. It connects to the wall of the mother’s uterus. The baby and mother are separated by a very thin membrane⁸ - a wall of particular cells. This membrane has very small holes in it. The holes let the vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients through to the placenta. These nutrients are the baby’s food.
Voice 1
Extending out from the placenta is a thick group of blood vessels⁹ and other strong tissue. It looks like a rope. This is the umbilical cord. The umbilical cord connects the forming baby to the placenta and his mother. There are one or two major veins¹⁰ inside this cord. They carry the blood full of nutrients from the placenta to the baby. The umbilical cord supplies these nutrients until the baby is born.
Voice 2
Normally, when a baby is born doctors place a clamp¹¹, a holding device, on the umbilical cord. This stops the flow of blood from the placenta to the baby. Then, they cut the thick cord. They clamp and cut the umbilical cord very quickly - usually between ten [10] to twenty [20] seconds after the baby is born.
Voice 1
Recently, a group of doctors in Mexico and the United States studied a group of three hundred and fifty eight [358] mothers and their newborn babies. They wanted to research the effects of delaying the cord clamping¹² procedure especially in healthy full-term newborns. They wanted to see if delaying cord clamping would affect the babies’ stores of iron. They hoped it would increase the amount of iron in the babies’ bodies.
Voice 2
The doctors divided the mothers and babies into two [2] groups. For one [1] group, they clamped¹³ and cut the umbilical cords about ten [10] seconds after the baby was born - like normal. For the other group, the doctors waited two minutes after birth before clamping and cutting the umbilical cord. When the cord remains¹⁴ attached for more time, the extra blood from the placenta can continue to flow through the umbilical cord. This blood contains many nutrients helpful to the baby. The blood also contains iron. A larger supply of iron can help a baby to avoid anaemia.
Voice 1
Every two [2] months, the doctors collected information about the health of the babies - what they ate, how much they grew, and if they got sick. They also measured the amount of iron the babies had in their bodies. Doctor Kathryn Dewey helped to lead the research. She said the results were very encouraging.
Voice 3
“The results show that the two minute delay in cord clamping increased the child’s iron supply by twenty seven [27] to forty seven [47] milligrams of iron. This is the same as one [1] to two [2] months of newborn iron requirements. This could help prevent iron deficiency from developing before six [6] months of age ... After that, babies can have food that has more iron in it.”
Voice 2
Doctors have known about some positive results of delayed cord clamping for over thirty [30] years. They knew that the baby received more blood the longer he was attached to the umbilical cord. But the effects have not been proven until now.
Voice 1
The research showed that this small change in the process of birth had lasting¹⁵ results. And doctors could even see the results six [6] months later! Anaemia is common in every part of the world. But it is especially common in developing countries. Many people living in these areas are not able to pay for treatments for anaemia. So this simple, painless, and low-cost process is very helpful. Doctor Dewey says:
Voice 3
“By simply delaying cord clamping for this short time, we can provide the newborn with the extra blood, and the iron it contains, from the placenta. This is an efficient, low-cost way to intervene¹⁶ at birth without harm to the newborn or the mother.”
Voice 2
Delayed cord clamping is one way to help keep a newborn from becoming anaemic. But babies also need to continue getting iron as they grow. Feeding a baby breast milk is one good way to make sure she gets the nutrients she needs.
Voice 1
The next step for Doctor Dewey and her research team is to spread information. They hope to tell other doctors about the encouraging results of delayed cord clamping. And they hope to increase the use of this method in different parts of the world.

1 spotlight   

n.公众注意的中心，聚光灯，探照灯，视听，注意，醒目

参考例句：

• This week the spotlight is on the world of fashion.本周引人瞩目的是时装界。
• The spotlight followed her round the stage.聚光灯的光圈随着她在舞台上转。

2 pregnancy   

n.怀孕，怀孕期

参考例句：

• Early pregnancy is often accompanied by nausea.怀孕早期常有恶心的现象。
• Smoking during pregnancy increases the risk of miscarriage.怀孕期吸烟会增加流产的危险。

3 pregnant   

adj.怀孕的，怀胎的

参考例句：

• She is a pregnant woman.她是一名孕妇。
• She is pregnant with her first child.她怀了第一胎。

4 deficiency   

n.缺乏，不足，缺点，缺陷

参考例句：

• During the war children suffered from a deficiency of food.战争期间孩子们遭受缺乏食物之苦。
• Fortunately,color deficiency is not a serious medical problem.幸运的是，色盲并不是一种严重的医学问题。

5 lighter   

n.打火机，点火器；驳船；v.用驳船运送；light的比较级

参考例句：

• The portrait was touched up so as to make it lighter.这张画经过润色，色调明朗了一些。
• The lighter works off the car battery.引燃器利用汽车蓄电池打火。

6 immune   

adj.免疫的，有免疫力的，不受影响的，免除的

参考例句：

• I am immune from the disease,for I had it once.我对这病有免疫力，因为我已得过一次了。
• Be immune from corruption.拒腐蚀，永不沾。

7 nutrients   

n.（食品或化学品）营养物，营养品( nutrient的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a lack of essential nutrients 基本营养的缺乏
• Nutrients are absorbed into the bloodstream. 营养素被吸收进血液。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 membrane   

n.薄膜，膜皮，羊皮纸

参考例句：

• A vibrating membrane in the ear helps to convey sounds to the brain.耳膜的振动帮助声音传送到大脑。
• A plastic membrane serves as selective diffusion barrier.一层塑料薄膜起着选择性渗透屏障的作用。

9 vessels   

n.血管( vessel的名词复数 )；船；容器；（具有特殊品质或接受特殊品质的）人

参考例句：

• The river is navigable by vessels of up to 90 tons. 90 吨以下的船只可以从这条河通过。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• All modern vessels of any size are fitted with radar installations. 所有现代化船只都有雷达装置。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

10 veins   

n.纹理；矿脉( vein的名词复数 )；静脉；叶脉；纹理

参考例句：

• The blood flows from the capillaries back into the veins. 血从毛细血管流回静脉。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I felt a pleasant glow in all my veins from the wine. 喝过酒后我浑身的血都热烘烘的，感到很舒服。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 clamp   

n.夹子，钳子；vt.（用夹钳）夹住，夹紧

参考例句：

• Clamp the two pieces of wood together until the glue dries.用夹钳把两块木板夹紧，等胶水干了再松开。
• He used a clamp to hold the arm on the chair until the glue dried.他用夹子将扶手夹在椅子上，直到胶水干后再取下。

12 clamping   

箝位

参考例句：

• Our institute is clamping down on those who often play truant. 我们学院正在严加惩处那些经常逃学的学生。
• They are busy clamping down the deck. 他们正在忙着冲刷甲板。

13 clamped   

夹紧，夹住( clamp的过去式和过去分词 )； 紧紧抓住； 紧夹住； 被抓住

参考例句：

• They clamped down on the newspapers. 他们施加压力制止报纸报道。
• All with their eyes intently fastened on the iron-clamped oaken door. 他们一个个都紧盯着布满铁钉的橡木牢门。 来自英汉 - 翻译样例 - 文学

14 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

15 lasting   

adj.永久的，永恒的；vbl.持续，维持

参考例句：

• The lasting war debased the value of the dollar.持久的战争使美元贬值。
• We hope for a lasting settlement of all these troubles.我们希望这些纠纷能获得永久的解决。

16 intervene   

vi.干涉，干预，干扰，阻挠

参考例句：

• When riot broke out,the police were obliged to intervene.发生暴乱时，警察有责任干预。
• You don't intervene between those two drunks.你不要在那两个酒鬼之间进行调解。