VOA标准英语2011--Experts Urge Global Action Against Chron

Experts Urge Global Action Against Chronic¹ Diseases

Infectious diseases like AIDS, malaria², and tuberculosis³ get a lot of attention worldwide. But another group of illnesses is even more deadly. Now, an international group of health experts says the time has come to take concerted action against non-communicable diseases.
The diseases include heart disease, stroke, cancer, and diabetes⁴. Together, these non-communicable or chronic diseases represent a major cause of death, and they aren't just diseases of wealthy, industrialized countries.
"And if we look worldwide, these non-communicable diseases account for about two-thirds of deaths overall.
"About four-fifths of these deaths are in low-income countries, and they affect about a third of people under the age of 60," said Martin McKee of the London School of Hygiene⁵ and Tropical Medicine.
McKee is one of 44 co-authors of a paper describing the challenge of non-communicable diseases. Writing online in The Lancet, they set out a program to reduce the death toll⁶ by two percent a year.
As many as 36 million lives could be saved over the course of a decade, McKee says, if priority is given to five major public health goals, "tobacco control, reduction of salt in the diet, more generally improving diets and physical activity, reducing hazardous⁷ alcohol consumption, and insuring that people have access to essential drugs and to technologies."
Those goals are challenging, and Martin McKee says it will require committed leadership.
"If you look at the remarkable⁸ achievements that have been made in a number of industrialized countries in recent years, then it becomes clear that changes can happen, and changes can happen relatively⁹ quickly. So I would say changing the mindset to recognize what is possible to be done."
The action plan for non-communicable diseases comes ahead of a high-level United Nations meeting set for September to focus on the issue.

1 chronic   

adj.(疾病)长期未愈的，慢性的；极坏的

参考例句：

• Famine differs from chronic malnutrition.饥荒不同于慢性营养不良。
• Chronic poisoning may lead to death from inanition.慢性中毒也可能由虚弱导致死亡。

2 malaria   

n.疟疾

参考例句：

• He had frequent attacks of malaria.他常患疟疾。
• Malaria is a kind of serious malady.疟疾是一种严重的疾病。

3 tuberculosis   

n.结核病，肺结核

参考例句：

• People used to go to special health spring to recover from tuberculosis.人们常去温泉疗养胜地治疗肺结核。
• Tuberculosis is a curable disease.肺结核是一种可治愈的病。

4 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。

5 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。

6 toll   

n.过路(桥)费；损失，伤亡人数；v.敲(钟)

参考例句：

• The hailstone took a heavy toll of the crops in our village last night.昨晚那场冰雹损坏了我们村的庄稼。
• The war took a heavy toll of human life.这次战争夺去了许多人的生命。

7 hazardous   

adj.(有)危险的，冒险的；碰运气的

参考例句：

• These conditions are very hazardous for shipping.这些情况对航海非常不利。
• Everybody said that it was a hazardous investment.大家都说那是一次危险的投资。

8 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。

9 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。