VOA慢速英语2020 新冠病毒导致美国出生率雪上加霜

From VOA Learning English, this is the Health & Lifestyle report.

这里是美国之音慢速英语健康和生活报道。

The number of births in the United States continued to fall last year. This led to the fewest U.S. newborns in 35 years, the Associated Press notes.

美国去年的出生人数继续下降。美联社指出，这导致了美国35年来最低的新生儿人数。

The number of newborns has been falling for more than 10 years. And some experts say the coronavirus pandemic and its effect on the economy will result in even fewer births.

美国的新生儿人数十多年来一直在下降。有专家表示，新冠病毒大流行及其对经济的影响将会导致出生人数更低。

"This unpredictable environment, and concerns about the future, are going to make women think twice before having children," said Denise Jamieson. She is a doctor and head of the Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia.

丹尼斯·贾米森表示：“这种不可预测的环境以及对未来的担忧，将使女性在生孩子前再三考虑。”她是一名医生，也是佐治亚州亚特兰大市埃默里大学妇产学科的主任。

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported the latest birth numbers on May 20. The report is based on a study of more than 99% of birth records from 2019. The findings are considered preliminary.

美国疾病预防与控制中心于5月20日报告了最新的出生人数。该报告是基于一项对2019年以来99%以上出生记录的研究。它被认为是初步研究结果。

The CDC found the number of births fell to about 3.7 million last year. This is about one percent less than the number in 2018.

美国疾病控制与预防中心发现，去年的出生人数下降到了370万。这比2018年的数量下降了大约1%。

Birth rates continued to fall for teenagers and women in their 20s. However, for women in their early 40s, the report noted¹ an increase in births.

20来岁女性的出生率继续下降。然而该报告指出，40岁出头女性的出生率有所上升。

Experts say there are many reasons for falling birth rates. Among them are changing ideas about motherhood and family planning. Many women and couples now delay having children. Also, once they decide to start a family, they have fewer children.

专家表示，出生率下降的原因有很多。其中包括母性和计划生育观念的不断变化。现在很多女性和夫妇推迟生育孩子。此外，一旦决定建立家庭，他们也会少生孩子。

Experts also say there is good reason to think a weak economy will result in even lower birth rates. Aside from a one-year increase in 2014, U.S. births have been falling every year since 2007. That year a recession hit the United States. The drop in births continued even after the economy recovered.

专家还说，有充分理由认为经济疲软会导致更低的出生率。除了2014年出现了一年的增长，自2007年以来，美国的出生率每年都在下降。那一年经济衰退席卷了美国。即使在经济复苏之后，出生率也继续下降。

John Santelli is a professor of population and family health at Columbia University in New York. He says there are many reasons why economic conditions affect birth rates.

约翰·桑特里是纽约市哥伦比亚大学人口与家庭健康学教授。他说，经济形势影响出生率的原因有很多。

Santelli noted that many jobs are low-paying and unpredictable. When you combine those kinds of jobs with the high cost of housing and other living expenses, people think carefully before having children.

桑特里指出，许多工作薪水很低并且朝不保夕。当把这样的工作跟高昂的住房成本以及其它生活费用结合在一起时，人们在生孩子前就会仔细斟酌。

Brady Hamilton was the lead author of the CDC report. The effect of the pandemic, Hamilton said, will not become clear in hospital maternity² wards³ until late this year or early next year.

布雷迪·汉密尔顿是美国疾病控制与预防中心这篇报告的主要作者。汉密尔顿表示，这次新冠大流行的影响要到今年下半年或明年年初才能在医院的产科病房中显现出来。

Santelli notes it is possible births will increase among some groups. Getting access to birth control and operations for ending pregnancies⁴ has become more difficult, he said. He added that couples stuck at home together may have more time for sex.

桑特里指出，某些人群的出生率可能会增加。他说，要进行节育或堕胎手术都变得更加困难。他还说，夫妻一起被困家里，可能就有更多时间为爱鼓掌。

However, other experts say it is more likely that birth rates will fall. Hans-Peter Kohler is a fertility researcher at the University of Pennsylvania. He said the idea that there will be a lot of "coronababies" is "widely perceived as a myth."

但是也有专家表示，出生率下降的可能性更大。汉斯彼得·科勒是宾夕法尼亚大学的生育研究人员。他说，认为会有很多“新冠宝宝”的观点被广泛认为是非常荒诞的想法。

Kohler said that the debate most experts are having is not about whether there will be a decrease in births, but whether it will be lasting⁵.

科勒表示，大多数专家争论的不是出生率是否会减少，而是是否会持续下去。

And that's the Health & Lifestyle report. I'm Anna Matteo.

以上就是本期健康与生活的全部内容。我是安娜·马特奥。

1 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

2 maternity   

n.母性，母道，妇产科病房；adj.孕妇的，母性的

参考例句：

• Women workers are entitled to maternity leave with full pay.女工产假期间工资照发。
• Trainee nurses have to work for some weeks in maternity.受训的护士必须在产科病房工作数周。

3 wards   

区( ward的名词复数 )； 病房； 受监护的未成年者； 被人照顾或控制的状态

参考例句：

• This hospital has 20 medical [surgical] wards. 这所医院有 20 个内科[外科]病房。
• It was a big constituency divided into three wards. 这是一个大选区，下设三个分区。

4 pregnancies   

怀孕，妊娠( pregnancy的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Since the wartime population needed replenishment, pregnancies were a good sign. 最后一桩倒不失为好现象，战时人口正该补充。
• She's had three pregnancies in four years. 她在四年中怀孕叁次。

5 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。