2017考研英语拓展阅读：苹果醋有多神奇？

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2017考研英语拓展阅读：苹果醋有多神奇？

　　Apple cider vinegar is made by mixing chopped-up apples with water and sugar, then allowing the mixture to ferment, turning some of it into acetic acid.

　　苹果醋是由切碎的苹果与水和糖混合制成的，然后让混合物发酵，随之变成醋酸。

　　Despite being acidic and definitely something of an acquired taste, in recent years apple cider vinegar has become incredibly popular. At least a part of that is because of claims that it can help with everything from obesity to split ends and arthritis.

　　尽管这是一种呈酸性而且是后天制成的味道，近几年，苹果醋却变得超乎寻常地流行起来。其中一部分的原因即是苹果醋被认为能够对减肥、对关节炎等疾病都有缓解作用。

　　But which, if any, of the many different health claims made on its behalf stand up to scientific scrutiny? For Trust Me, I’m A Doctor we teamed up with Dr James Brown from Aston University to find out.

　　但这些代表了不同立场的健康主张，是否经得起科学的审查?相信我，我是一名医生，我与阿斯顿大学的詹姆斯·布朗博士一起对苹果醋的功效进行了考察。

　　We started by testing a claim which does seem to have the most scientific credibility - the claim that drinking a couple of tablespoons of vinegar, diluted in water, before a meal will help you control your blood sugar levels.

　　我们从测试一种似乎是最科学最可靠的说法开始，这种说法声称在餐前喝几汤匙兑水的苹果醋，能帮助我们有效控制血糖含量。

　　To see if there was substance to this idea we recruited healthy volunteers and asked them to eat two bagels, after having fasted overnight. We measured their blood sugar levels before and after eating and, as we expected, bagel consumption was followed by a large and rapid rise in their blood sugar levels.

　　为了保证我们的这个想法没有其他的干扰因素，我们招募了一批身体健康的志愿者，在要求他们禁食一夜后让他们吃了两个面包圈。我们测量了志愿者们在进食前和进食后的血糖含量，如我们所料，面包圈消化后，血糖含量大幅上升。

　　The next day we asked them to consume another two bagels, but this time we asked them to knock back a diluted shot of apple cider vinegar just before doing so. Finally, we repeated the test a few days later, but this time we got our brave volunteers to gulp down some dilute malt vinegar before the bagel.

　　第二天，我们同样让志愿者们进食了两个面包圈，不过这一次，在他们吃面包圈之前我们让他们喝了几汤匙稀释过的苹果醋。随后，我们在接下来的几天都重复了这个实验，但在此轮实验中，我们让志愿者在进食面包圈之前喝一定数量的麦芽醋。

　　It turned out that the apple cider vinegar, but not the malt vinegar, had a big impact, reducing the amount of sugar in the volunteers’ blood by 36% over 90 minutes.

　　实验结果显示，苹果醋对血糖含量能产生一个较大的影响，它能够在超过90分钟之后，将志愿者身体中的血糖含量降低36%，而麦芽醋却没有这种功效。

　　Next, we wanted to see whether apple cider vinegar lived up to claims that it helps with weight loss, lowers cholesterol and reduces inflammation (which might help with conditions like rheumatoid/inflammatory arthritis and eczema).

　　接下来，我们想知道苹果醋是否如它所声称的那样，能够帮助人们减肥，降低胆固醇，减少炎症的发生(这可能有助于疾病如类风湿/影响炎性关节炎和湿疹)。

　　We recruited 30 volunteers and divided them into three groups. Our first group were asked to drink two tablespoons of apple cider vinegar diluted in 200ml of water twice a day, every day, before a meal. The second group were asked to do the same with malt vinegar and the final group were given a placebo consisting of coloured water.

　　我们招募了30位志愿者，并将他们分成了三组。第一组志愿者被要求每天在餐前喝两汤匙被200毫升水稀释过的苹果醋，每天喝两次。而第二组志愿者则被要求喝等量的麦芽醋。第三组志愿者则被要求饮用作为对照的彩色水。

　　Two months later I met up with Dr Brown and our volunteers to find out how they had all got on.

　　两个月以后，我和布朗博士以及我们的志愿者碰面，看看实验的进展如何。

　　But what did Dr Brown’s tests reveal?

　　但是布朗博士的实验显示了什么呢?

　　I’m sorry to say, he told his expectant audience, "that none of you lost any weight."

　　“我很抱歉地告诉你们，”布朗博士如是告诉他满怀期待的观众，“你们中没有一个人有减轻任何重量。”

　　That was disappointing, though not entirely surprising.

　　这个结果是令人失望的，但却并不是令人吃惊的。

　　So apple cider vinegar probably won’t help anyone slim down, but it may help those who struggle with their blood sugar or cholesterol levels.

　　因此，苹果醋并不能帮助我们减肥，或是保持苗条的身材;但是另一方面，它却能够帮助我们维持血糖和胆固醇平衡。

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