新奇事件簿 睡午觉增加中风风险?（在线收听）

People used to believe that taking an afternoon nap was good for their health. However, according to a new report, daytime dozing may actually harm our health, especially in the elderly. A team of American researchers told the recent International Stroke Conference that older people who regularly napped were more likely to suffer a stroke. Their research showed that “some dozing” increased the risk of a stroke by up to 2.6 times, compared with those who never took naps. “Significant dozing” meant the risk was 4.5 times higher. The researchers said that the habit of napping may be an early warning sign of a future stroke. The team leader, Dr Bernadette Boden-Albala advised doctors to keep a check on older people who often dozed off. She said: “If patients are moderately or significantly dozing, physicians need to think about sending them for further evaluation."

过去，人们常常以为睡午觉有益健康。然而，根据一份新的报告，白天打盹可能会对健康有害，特别是对年龄较大的人来说。一些美国研究人员在最近召开的国际中风会议上表示，经常午睡的老年人更有可能中风。他们的研究显示，与从来不午睡的人相比，“偶尔小睡”可能会使中风的风险增加2.6倍。“经常午睡”意味着中风的风险高4.5倍。研究人员表示，午睡的习惯可能是将来中风的早期预警信号。研究小组负责人Bernadette Boden-Albala医生建议医生们对经常午睡的老年人进行体检。她表示：“如果病人们比较经常或者非常经常打盹，医生们需要考虑对他们进行进一步评估。”

In the two-and-a-half-year study, the team asked 2,000 people how often they dozed off in different situations. These included while watching TV, sitting and chatting to someone, relaxing after lunch, and stopping in traffic while driving. All the participants were aged 40 or above and none had previously suffered a stroke. The team’s findings were adjusted to take into account traditional stroke risk factors, such as age, race, gender, education, blood pressure, diabetes, obesity, and levels of exercise. Dr Boden-Albala suggested we need to question what is healthiest for us, saying “sleepiness obviously puts us at risk of stroke". She added this was important to ask because other studies show that people do not get enough sleep, which makes them constantly tired. The study’s findings may not be comfortable reading for those in countries where siestas are common.

在为期两年半的研究中，该小组询问2000人他们在不同的场合下打盹的频率。包括看电视的时候，坐着的时候，和别人聊天的时候，午餐后放松的时候，以及堵车的时候。所有参加者都是40岁或40岁以上，以前从未患过中风。该小组正在调整调查结果，将传统的中风风险因子考虑在内，例如年龄，种族，性别，教育水平，血压，糖尿病，肥胖和运动水平。Boden-Albala建议，我们需要提问怎样对我们来说是最健康的，他认为“瞌睡很显然会让我们处于中风的风险。”她补充说，问这个问题非常重要，因为其他研究显示人们没有充足的睡眠，这让他们经常感到疲惫。那些经常午休的国家的人看到这份报告或许会不开心。