VOA慢速英语：花生过敏？那就早点吃花生！

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

这里是美国之音慢速英语的《健康与生活方式报道》。

Peanuts are among the most popular snack foods in the United States.

花生是美国最受欢迎的零食之一。

Millions of American children are raised on peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. PB&Js, as we like to call them, are found in children's lunchboxes around the country. Or at least they used to be.

数百万的美国儿童是吃着花生酱和果冻三明治长大的。我们喜欢称它们为PB&J(花生酱果冻)，在全国各地的儿童午餐盒中都有。至少以前是这样。

Now, many school officials ban peanuts or any products containing peanuts from school property.

现在，许多学校官员禁止花生或任何含有花生的产品进入学校。

About 2 percent of U.S. schoolchildren will have an allergic reaction to peanuts. And that number is growing.

大约2%的美国学童会对花生过敏。而且这个数字还在增长。

People allergic to peanuts can develop skin conditions or watery eyes. Children with a peanut allergy can develop a skin condition called eczema.

对花生过敏的人会出现皮肤问题或流泪的症状。对花生过敏的儿童会患上一种叫做湿疹的皮肤病。

Some reactions are so severe they can result in death.

有些反应非常严重，甚至会导致死亡。

So far, doctors have advised parents against serving peanut-containing foods to children under the age of 3. But a 2015 British study found that waiting too long most likely is partly to blame for the peanut allergy problem.

到目前为止，医生建议父母不要给3岁以下的儿童食用含花生的食物。但2015年英国的一项研究发现，花生过敏问题的部分原因很可能是吃得太晚了。

Anthony Fauci is head of America's National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. Dr. Fauci spoke to VOA on Skype. He notes that in Israel, people have a tradition of feeding peanuts to babies.

安东尼·福奇是美国国家过敏和传染病研究所所长。福奇博士通过Skype接受了VOA的采访。他指出，以色列有给婴儿喂花生的传统。

He says the percentage of Israeli children with a peanut allergy is much lower than the rate among Jewish children living in England.

他说，以色列儿童对花生过敏的比例远低于生活在英国的犹太儿童的比例。

It was observed that in Israel -- where they have a custom of feeding peanut-based foods to babies, infants, within the first few months of life -- that when you, in fact, compare the incidence of peanut allergy among the Israeli children compared to comparable Jewish children living in England, the incidence of peanut allergy was more than 80 percent decreased among the Israeli kids as opposed to the kids who are living in England.

“据观察，以色列有个传统，婴儿刚出生的几个月会进食含有花生的食物，但是如果将以色列的孩子与生活在英国的犹太儿童对比，前者对花生过敏的比例要比后者低80%。”

Dr. Fauci says this finding is very important. It means that babies have a natural mechanism that can be trained not to react negatively to peanuts. That mechanism may turn off as the baby reaches the age of 1.

福奇博士表示，这一发现非常重要。这意味着婴儿体内存在天然的机制，锻炼后可以使得机体不对花生过敏。但这种机制在孩子一岁后就会失效。

He says a team of experts have agreed on new guidance for U.S. pediatricians who specialize in children's allergies.

他表示美国专门研究儿童过敏的儿科专家制定新的指导方针，其他专家对此表示认可。

Fauci calls giving children peanuts a way of "challenging" their bodies. He thinks it could be done safely with some boys and girls, but not with others.

福奇说道，让孩子吃花生是对机体的一种“挑战”。他表示，一些孩子可以安全承受，但是有些孩子则不然。

If the child has a history of severe eczema or egg allergy, that in the first 4 to 6 months of life, that you should bring the child to an allergy specialist who can do a skin test or a blood test to determine if the child does have an underlying allergy to peanuts. Because if they do, you are going to want to refrain from challenging that child. Whereas if they don't, then it would be safe to challenge the child and feed them peanuts at 4 to 6 months.

“如果孩子有严重的湿疹或鸡蛋过敏史，在出生后的前4到6个月，你应该带孩子去看过敏专家，他们可以做皮肤测试或血液测试，确定孩子是否对花生有潜在的过敏。如果存在这种可能，我们就不再‘挑战’这个孩子。如果不存在这种可能，我们就可以在婴儿4-6个月时喂一些花生。”

If the child has moderate eczema and has a mild reaction to eggs, the doctor is likely to suggest that that child be fed peanut-containing foods at the age of 6 months. That child may need no allergy tests either.

如果孩子患有轻微的湿疹或者对鸡蛋出现轻微过敏现象，医生很可能建议在孩子6个月时喂孩子吃含有花生的食物。这样的孩子不需要进行过敏测试。

Children who have no allergies or family history of allergies can be given peanuts at any age.

没有过敏或家族过敏史的儿童在任何年龄都可以吃花生。

And that's the Health & Lifestyle report.

以上就是本期《健康与生活方式报道》的全部内容。

I'm Anna Matteo.

安娜·马特奥报道。