One Thing You Can Do Right Now to Help Your Heart
你现在就可以做的有助于心脏健康的一件事
From VOA Learning English, this is the Health & Lifestyle report.
来自VOA英语学习，这里是健康和生活方式报道。
Many diseases and medical conditions are caused by things out of our control. Yet experts say you can control and even prevent many of the risk factors that increase your chances of dying.
很多疾病和病理状况都是由我们无法控制的事物引起的。 然而专家表示，我们能控制并且甚至能阻止很多增加死亡几率的危险因素。
Experts note that an unhealthy lifestyle can put you at great risk of heart disease and stroke. Poor diet, having too much body fat and a lack of physical exercise all increase your risk of heart disease -- so can using tobacco products and drinking too much alcohol.
专家指出一个不健康的生活方式能使你患心脏疾病和中风的风险很大。糟糕的日常饮食、体内脂肪过多或者缺乏体育锻炼都会增加你获得心脏疾病的风险。吸烟制品和饮酒过量也会增加风险。
So doctors urge us to eat healthy foods, get exercise, stop smoking and limit our alcohol intake.
所以医生力劝我们食用健康的事物，进行锻炼，戒烟并限制我们的酒精摄入量。
But there is something else you can do. And it is free and easy. Smile!
但是你还可以做其他的事情。并且它是免费且很容易做到。那就是微笑！
Anand Chockalingam is a heart disease specialist at University of Missouri Health Care in Columbia, Missouri. He advises his patients to smile.
阿南德·乔卡林甘是密苏里州哥伦比亚密苏里大学医学院的心脏疾病专家。他建议他的患者要微笑。
"When we smile, the brain wiring gets altered. The chemicals that are released are more positive."
“当我们微笑时，大脑的构造会发生改变。释放的化学物质更具有积极的一面。”
He says smiling is a first step in fighting physical and emotional stress and its sometimes harmful effects on human health. This is not just New Age advice. Several studies support Dr. Chockaligam’s prescription to smile more.
他表示微笑是对抗身体和情绪压力以及他们对人类健康产生的有害影响第一步。这不仅仅是新时代生活方式的建议。几项研究更加支持了乔卡利甘的多微笑处方。
When we talk about disorders of the heart and blood vessels, we are talking about cardiovascular diseases, such as coronary heart disease. And they are the number one cause of death around the world. That information comes from the World Health Organization.
当我们谈到心脏和血管紊乱时，我们常谈到冠心病等心血管疾病。并且他们是世界上的第一大致死因素。这个信息来自世界卫生组织。
The main cause of heart attacks and strokes are blockages in blood vessels. These prevent blood from flowing to the heart or the brain. The most common reason for these blockages is a build-up of fatty deposits on the inner walls of the arteries.
心脏病发作和中风的主要起因是血管中的阻塞物。这些阻塞物阻止血液流进心脏或者大脑。这些堵塞物形成的最常见的原因是动脉内壁脂肪物的沉积。
When you feel stressed or under pressure, your body releases many natural hormones including adrenaline and cortisol.
当你感到焦虑不安或者承受着压力时，你的身体会释放很多肾上腺素和皮质醇等自然激素。
Adrenaline increases your heart rate and blood pressure. Cortisol is the body’s main stress hormone. It increases sugar in the bloodstream. If you are truly in danger, these hormones can help you. They are part of what we call our fight-or-flight response.
肾上腺素使你的心率加快、血压升高。皮质醇是身体的主要应激激素。它增加血流中的糖分。如果你真的处境危险时，这些激素会帮助你。他们是我们常说的战斗或逃跑反应（一种应激反应）中的一种。
However, when stressed for a long period, these stress hormones are ever-present in our bodies. And that, medical researchers warn, may lead to health problems.
然而，当我们的焦虑情绪维持很长一段时间时，这些压力激素会经常存在在我们的体内。并且医学研究人员警告那可能引发健康问题。
Researchers with the American Heart Association say the connection between stress and heart disease is still unclear.
美国心脏协会的研究人员表示压力与心脏疾病之间的联系还不是很明确。
However, they claim that when people are stressed for long periods of time, they may not make the best decisions about what to eat. They may overeat, smoke or drink too much alcohol. They may not get enough exercise or sleep. And all of this can lead to health problems.
然而，他们声称当人们焦虑持续很长一段时间时，他们可能不能对自己的饮食做出最佳决定。他们可能吃得太多、吸很多烟或者喝太多酒。他们可能没有足够的锻炼和睡眠。并且所有这些可能导致健康问题。
Dr. Chockalingam says a smile may be one way to help.He tells his patients to smile 20 times an hour. To some, that might seem like a lot of smiling. Or some might even feel foolish ... smiling for seemingly no reason. But a smile does not involve drugs. It is not invasive like a surgical operation. It is free and it has no bad side effects.
乔卡利甘博士表示微笑可能成为有帮助意义的一种方式。他告诉他的患者一个小时要微笑20次。对于某些人来说，那似乎微笑过度了。或者一些人甚至可能感觉看起来毫无理由的微笑这种行为很愚蠢。但是一个微笑并没有害处。它并不像一个外科手术那样具有侵入性。它是免费的并且没有副作用。
"Once people smile, they are relaxing. This relaxation directly lowers blood pressure, improves sugar levels in the blood. If we are smiling, we are breaking that link between stress and health."
“一旦人们开始微笑，他们就放松下来。这种放松可直接降低血压，改善血糖水平。如果我们正在微笑，我们正在打破健康与压力之间的联系。”
And it just may provide a little extra protection to everyone's heart health. And that's the Health & Lifestyle report.
并且它可能对每个人的心脏健康提供额外的保护。那是健康与生活方式报道的全部内容。
I’m Anna Matteo.
安娜·马泰奥为您报道。
One Thing You Can Do Right Now to Help Your Heart
From VOA Learning English, this is the Health & Lifestyle report.
Many diseases and medical conditions are caused by things out of our control. Yet experts say you can control and even prevent many of the risk factors that increase your chances of dying.
Experts note that an unhealthy lifestyle can put you at great risk of heart disease and stroke. Poor diet, having too much body fat and a lack of physical exercise all increase your risk of heart disease -- so can using tobacco products and drinking too much alcohol.
So doctors urge us to eat healthy foods, get exercise, stop smoking and limit our alcohol intake.
But there is something else you can do. And it is free and easy. Smile!
Anand Chockalingam is a heart disease specialist at University of Missouri Health Care in Columbia, Missouri. He advises his patients to smile.
"When we smile, the brain wiring gets altered. The chemicals that are released are more positive."
He says smiling is a first step in fighting physical and emotional stress and its sometimes harmful effects on human health. This is not just New Age advice. Several studies support Dr. Chockaligam’s prescription to smile more.
When we talk about disorders of the heart and blood vessels, we are talking about cardiovascular diseases, such as coronary heart disease. And they are the number one cause of death around the world. That information comes from the World Health Organization.
The main cause of heart attacks and strokes are blockages in blood vessels. These prevent blood from flowing to the heart or the brain. The most common reason for these blockages is a build-up of fatty deposits on the inner walls of the arteries.
When you feel stressed or under pressure, your body releases many natural hormones including adrenaline and cortisol.
Adrenaline increases your heart rate and blood pressure. Cortisol is the body’s main stress hormone. It increases sugar in the bloodstream. If you are truly in danger, these hormones can help you. They are part of what we call our fight-or-flight response.
However, when stressed for a long period, these stress hormones are ever-present in our bodies. And that, medical researchers warn, may lead to health problems.
Researchers with the American Heart Association say the connection between stress and heart disease is still unclear.
However, they claim that when people are stressed for long periods of time, they may not make the best decisions about what to eat. They may overeat, smoke or drink too much alcohol. They may not get enough exercise or sleep. And all of this can lead to health problems.
Dr. Chockalingam says a smile may be one way to help.He tells his patients to smile 20 times an hour. To some, that might seem like a lot of smiling. Or some might even feel foolish ... smiling for seemingly no reason. But a smile does not involve drugs. It is not invasive like a surgical operation. It is free and it has no bad side effects.
"Once people smile, they are relaxing. This relaxation directly lowers blood pressure, improves sugar levels in the blood. If we are smiling, we are breaking that link between stress and health."
And it just may provide a little extra protection to everyone's heart health. And that's the Health & Lifestyle report.
I’m Anna Matteo.
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Words in This Story
factor – n. something that helps produce or influence a
result : one of the things that cause something to happen
altered – adj. made different in some way
positive – adj. good or useful
New Age – adj. capitalized : an eclectic group of cultural attitudes arising in late 20th century Western society that are adapted from those of a variety of ancient and modern cultures, that are outside the mainstream, and that advance alternative approaches to spirituality, right living,and health
prescription – n. a written message from a doctor that officially tells someone to use a medicine, therapy, etc.
invasive – adj. involving entry into the living body as by incision or by insertion of an instrument
side effect – n. an often harmful and unwanted effect of a drug or chemical that occurs along with the desired effect
relax – v. to become calm and free from stress : relaxing – adj.
fight-or-flight response – noun Physiology, Psychology : the response of the sympathetic nervous system to a stressful event, preparing the body to fight or flee : associated with the adrenal secretion of epinephrine and characterized by increased heart rate, increased blood flow to the brain and muscles, raised sugar levels, sweaty palms and soles, dilated pupils, and erect hairs
内容来自 VOA英语学习网：https://www.chinavoa.com/show-8748-241774-1.html
