PBS高端访谈:为什么我们要为过度饮酒而买单?

 　　JUDY WOODRUFF: Now: A new report from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shines a light on the dangers of overindulging in alcohol.

　　Hari Sreenivasan, in our New York studio, has that.

　　HARI SREENIVASAN: The study ranks excessive alcohol consumption as the fourth leading cause of preventable deaths in the U.S., accounting¹ for one in 10 deaths among working-age Americans each year. Its effects also cost the U.S. economy roughly $224 billion every year.

　　And it is not just the alcoholic² drinker who is at risk. Partying, bingeing and daily drinking all take a toll³.

　　For a closer look, we turn to Dr. Robert Brewer⁴. He's head of the Alcohol Program at the CDC and co-author of the report. He joins us from Chicago.

　　So, first of all, we have known that excessive drinking has different costs on society. It's often a tragedy for the family or the loved ones of the diseased, but what surprised you about these numbers in this study?

　　DR. ROBERT BREWER, Alcohol Program, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Well, Hari, you're right.

　　We have known that excessive alcohol use is a huge public health problem for a long time. What surprised us in this study was the extent to which that public health impact was focused on working age adults. And as you noted⁵ in your opener, we estimate that about one in 10 deaths among working-age adults, ages 20-64 years, are attributable to excessive~ alcohol use.

　　That's a huge number and certainly indicates to us that we need to redouble our efforts to prevent it.

　　HARI SREENIVASAN: So this study also said that — the other statistic⁶ that reached out was the fourth leading cause of death attributable to excessive. How do we define excessive?

　　DR. ROBERT BREWER: Well, excessive alcohol use is sort of an umbrella term that we use for various patterns of alcohol consumption and also for drinking among certain high-risk groups. So, under the umbrella, we would include binge-drinking, which is, for a woman, consuming four or more drinks on an occasion that is within a short period of time, for men, five or more drinks within an occasion that is again within a short period of time, basically drinking to the point of acute intoxication⁷.

　　And then we would also include high average daily alcohol consumption, which would be greater than one drink per day on average for a woman, greater than two drinks per day on average for a man, and then any alcohol consumption by groups that we know to be at particularly high risk of harms from alcohol consumption, specifically underage youth, that is, youth under age 21, and pregnant women.

　　So, collectively, those four different groups would be under the umbrella of excessive alcohol use. Now, of those, binge-drinking is by far the most common pattern of excessive drinking.

　　HARI SREENIVASAN: And what are those factors that influence that? Does it happen more among males, more among young people?

　　DR. ROBERT BREWER: Well, there certainly are some important differences across different population groups.

　　And, yes, we know that men tend to binge-drink more than women. The prevalence, as we call it, the proportion of people who report binge-drinking is higher in younger-age groups, 18-24, but also 25-34.

　　But it's important to recognize that this really is an important public health problem across the lifespan. But, again, a lot of the public health impacts that we see related to excessive alcohol use — and in the case of our study we were looking at deaths in particular — are really concentrated in that group of working-age adults between 20 and 64 years.

　　And that's a huge, tragic⁸ loss to the — of course, the individual and to society. But it's also a very expensive problem for all of us. And, as you noted in your opening, we estimate the economic cost of excessive drinking at about $224 billion a year.

　　And a large proportion of that cost, about $2 out of every $5, is paid for by government. So, essentially⁹, all of us are paying the cost of excessive alcohol use.

　　HARI SREENIVASAN: And the results of this survey are self-reported, so is there a possibility that the numbers you're talking about could even be higher?

　　DR. ROBERT BREWER: Absolutely.

　　The estimates that we reported in our study, which, again, are deaths that are attributable to excessive alcohol use, are calculated in a variety of different ways, but part of that calculation does involve self-reports of alcohol consumption by individuals.

　　And we know that people tend to significantly under-report their alcohol consumption. So, yes, we believe that, for that reason, among others, the estimated total number of deaths that we reported, which is 88,000 per year, and shortening the lives of those who die by about 30 years, is probably a significant underestimate.

　　HARI SREENIVASAN: So, what do we know about policies or practices that change alcohol consumption behavior? What works?

　　DR. ROBERT BREWER: Well, actually, there are a lot of similarities in the policies and other services that can affect drinking, parallels between that and smoking.

　　So we know, for example, that people's drinking behavior is very much affected¹⁰ by the price of the alcohol. If alcohol is more expensive, people tend to drink less. We also know that alcohol consumption's very much affected by the availability of alcohol.

　　So, for example, if you have a very high concentration of bars or other establishments selling alcohol within a particular area, people are more likely to drink more as well. So, from a public health perspective, policies that relate to the price and the availability of alcohol are among those that we think can be most impactful in reducing excessive alcohol consumption.

　　HARI SREENIVASAN: All right.

　　DR. ROBERT BREWER: But there's also things that can be done in a doctor's office as well.

　　HARI SREENIVASAN: All right, Dr. Robert Brewer from the CDC, thanks so much.

　　DR. ROBERT BREWER: Thank you. I appreciate your interest.

1 accounting   

n.会计，会计学，借贷对照表

参考例句：

• A job fell vacant in the accounting department.财会部出现了一个空缺。
• There's an accounting error in this entry.这笔账目里有差错。

2 alcoholic   

adj.（含）酒精的，由酒精引起的；n.酗酒者

参考例句：

• The alcoholic strength of brandy far exceeds that of wine.白兰地的酒精浓度远远超过葡萄酒。
• Alcoholic drinks act as a poison to a child.酒精饮料对小孩犹如毒药。

3 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。

4 brewer   

n. 啤酒制造者

参考例句：

• Brewer is a very interesting man. 布鲁尔是一个很有趣的人。
• I decided to quit my job to become a brewer. 我决定辞职，做一名酿酒人。

5 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

6 statistic   

n.统计量；adj.统计的，统计学的

参考例句：

• Official statistics show real wages declining by 24%.官方统计数字表明实际工资下降了24%。
• There are no reliable statistics for the number of deaths in the battle.关于阵亡人数没有可靠的统计数字。

7 intoxication   

n.wild excitement;drunkenness；poisoning

参考例句：

• He began to drink, drank himself to intoxication, till he slept obliterated. 他一直喝，喝到他快要迷糊地睡着了。
• Predator: Intoxication-Damage over time effect will now stack with other allies. Predator:Intoxication,持续性伤害的效果将会与队友相加。

8 tragic   

adj.悲剧的，悲剧性的，悲惨的

参考例句：

• The effect of the pollution on the beaches is absolutely tragic.污染海滩后果可悲。
• Charles was a man doomed to tragic issues.查理是个注定不得善终的人。

9 essentially   

adv.本质上，实质上，基本上

参考例句：

• Really great men are essentially modest.真正的伟人大都很谦虚。
• She is an essentially selfish person.她本质上是个自私自利的人。

10 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。