Is 70 Really the New 60?(4)
There are many reasons that people are aging better, including improved medical care and a drop in smoking, but the factors that loomed largest in the Finnish study of physical function, lead author Kaisa Koivunen says, were that the later-born adults were more physically active and had bigger bodies, which suggests better nutrition. (In 1943 Finland became the world’s first country to require universal free lunch at school.) For brain function, the key seems to be more years of education. In both the Finnish and the Dutch studies, cognitive differences between the cohorts largely disappeared when researchers controlled for this factor.
人们衰老状况有所改善存在很多原因,例如医疗条件改善以及吸烟率降低,但据该芬兰身体机能相关研究其主要作者Kaisa Koivunen所说,其中隐现的最大因素是,较晚出生的成年人体力更佳,体格更为强壮,这意味着摄取营养更多。(1943年,芬兰成为世界上第一个要求学校全面免费提供午餐的国家。)就大脑功能而言,其关键似乎在于接受更多教育。在芬兰和荷兰的研究中,当研究人员控制这一因素时,队列之间的认知差异基本不存在了。
Education is a powerful influence on aging and health, says Luigi Ferrucci, scientific director of the U.S. National Institute on Aging: “With more education, you are probably going to have a larger income, which means you are more likely to go to the doctor, have good nutrition and have a job that is not eviscerating your body.” In prosperous countries, these advantages have not only lengthened life but most likely ensured that more years are spent in good health.
美国国家老龄化研究所科学主任路易吉·费鲁奇(Luigi Ferrucci)说道,教育是影响衰老和健康的一个重要因素:“多接受教育,您可能会获得更高收入,这意味着您由更大概率获得医生的照顾,拥有良好的营养,并且所做工作不会损耗你的身体。”在富裕国家中,这些优势不仅延长了寿命,而且很大概率保证身体健康的状态维持更久。
In the U.S., Ferrucci says, the benefits of prosperity are less equally distributed than in Finland or Denmark. He points out that the average life span is seven years shorter in a poor state such as Mississippi than in a wealthier one such as California. “Here we still have lots of people who cannot take the drugs they need because they cannot pay for them,” he says, and they may lack access to healthy foods and opportunities for exercise and learning that extend our vital years. In short, 70 may be the new 60 for many of us but not for all.
费鲁奇说,在美国,国家繁荣带来的利益分配不如芬兰和丹麦那般公平。他指出,在密西西比州这样的贫困州中,其人平均寿命较加利福尼亚这样的富裕州缩短七年。他说:“在这里,仍然有很多人因为没钱而无法获得所需药物,”而且他们可能甚至无法获得健康的食物以及运动和学习的机会,从而无法维持我们的身体活力。简而言之,对于我们当中许多人来说,70代可能是新的60代,但并非所有人都是如此。
【积累表达】
in short 总而言之
【重点词汇】
loom v.隐约可见
cohort n.支持者;一群;同生群
eviscerate v.切除……的内脏,损耗
prosperous a.繁荣的,兴旺的
lengthen v.延长,加长
distribute v.散发,分布
There are many reasons that people are aging better, including improved medical care and a drop in smoking, but the factors that loomed largest in the Finnish study of physical function, lead author Kaisa Koivunen says, were that the later-born adults were more physically active and had bigger bodies, which suggests better nutrition. (In 1943 Finland became the world’s first country to require universal free lunch at school.) For brain function, the key seems to be more years of education. In both the Finnish and the Dutch studies, cognitive differences between the cohorts largely disappeared when researchers controlled for this factor.
人们衰老状况有所改善存在很多原因,例如医疗条件改善以及吸烟率降低,但据该芬兰身体机能相关研究其主要作者Kaisa Koivunen所说,其中隐现的最大因素是,较晚出生的成年人体力更佳,体格更为强壮,这意味着摄取营养更多。(1943年,芬兰成为世界上第一个要求学校全面免费提供午餐的国家。)就大脑功能而言,其关键似乎在于接受更多教育。在芬兰和荷兰的研究中,当研究人员控制这一因素时,队列之间的认知差异基本不存在了。
Education is a powerful influence on aging and health, says Luigi Ferrucci, scientific director of the U.S. National Institute on Aging: “With more education, you are probably going to have a larger income, which means you are more likely to go to the doctor, have good nutrition and have a job that is not eviscerating your body.” In prosperous countries, these advantages have not only lengthened life but most likely ensured that more years are spent in good health.
美国国家老龄化研究所科学主任路易吉·费鲁奇(Luigi Ferrucci)说道,教育是影响衰老和健康的一个重要因素:“多接受教育,您可能会获得更高收入,这意味着您由更大概率获得医生的照顾,拥有良好的营养,并且所做工作不会损耗你的身体。”在富裕国家中,这些优势不仅延长了寿命,而且很大概率保证身体健康的状态维持更久。
In the U.S., Ferrucci says, the benefits of prosperity are less equally distributed than in Finland or Denmark. He points out that the average life span is seven years shorter in a poor state such as Mississippi than in a wealthier one such as California. “Here we still have lots of people who cannot take the drugs they need because they cannot pay for them,” he says, and they may lack access to healthy foods and opportunities for exercise and learning that extend our vital years. In short, 70 may be the new 60 for many of us but not for all.
费鲁奇说,在美国,国家繁荣带来的利益分配不如芬兰和丹麦那般公平。他指出,在密西西比州这样的贫困州中,其人平均寿命较加利福尼亚这样的富裕州缩短七年。他说:“在这里,仍然有很多人因为没钱而无法获得所需药物,”而且他们可能甚至无法获得健康的食物以及运动和学习的机会,从而无法维持我们的身体活力。简而言之,对于我们当中许多人来说,70代可能是新的60代,但并非所有人都是如此。
【积累表达】
in short 总而言之
【重点词汇】
loom v.隐约可见
cohort n.支持者;一群;同生群
eviscerate v.切除……的内脏,损耗
prosperous a.繁荣的,兴旺的
lengthen v.延长,加长
distribute v.散发,分布