VOA标准英语2011--Changing Indian Lifestyles Fuel 'Twin Epidemics' of Health Problems

Changing Indian Lifestyles Fuel 'Twin Epidemics¹' of Health Problems

 

New research shows India is experiencing a sharp rise in two major medical conditions typically associated with wealthier nations. Changing lifestyles and economic prosperity are seen as fueling the trend.

The study, "Screening India's Twin Epidemic," surveyed a nationwide sample of nearly 16,000 participants, nearly half of whom had hypertension, or high blood pressure. More than a third had diabetes², and about a fifth had both conditions.

Doctors say South Asians are genetically³ more prone⁴ to diabetes, and cases of the disease have been rising in India for the past 10 years. The country has more than 50 million diabetics.

The executive chairman at the Fortis Center for Diabetes and Metabolic⁵ Diseases in New Delhi, Dr. Anoop Misra, described diabetes as a lifestyle disease, fueled by urbanization and industrialization.

“So the indiscretion in the food intake⁶ has increased markedly over a period of time. At the same time, the physical inactivity has increased, more mechanization," said Misra. "And also, stress has increased. Smoking remains⁷ a significant problem, as well as alcohol intake has increased over a period of time.”

Changing dining habits

New research shows India is experiencing a sharp rise in hypertension and diabetes that is being fueled by urbanization, industrialization and prosperity, November 2011.

Misra said the age-old tradition in India of frugal⁸ eating at home is increasingly being replaced with dining out. Those benefiting from India's economic rise have more money to spend on fast food from chain restaurants and street vendors⁹.

The changing urban economy also has displaced gender¹⁰ roles. Many people say female family members used to be responsible for preparing the simple staple¹¹ foods India has long relied on.

“But nowadays, since everybody is professional, even our wives are working, so it will be much more problematic for us to do that,” said librarian Kapil Sachdeva.

Empty calories, sedentary lifestyle

Consuming empty calories is getting cheaper in urban areas. Cheap snacks like sugared cola and potato chips, however, also are increasingly available in rural areas, where Indians may not have the access to physicians who can diagnose and treat diabetes.

“And in another 10 years, we will have same status in rural areas, as far as diabetes is concerned, as we see now in urban area,” said Misra.

As living standards rise and the nature of work becomes more sedentary, the cost of burning calories rises in comparison to India's mainly agricultural past. Longer commuting¹² distances and easier access to transportation mean more sitting around.

“In my dad's time, he used to go to office by his bicycle first, so lot of hard work and physical movement was there," said Sandeep Sharma, a business manager. "But now we drive our car to office and we drive back by our car only. So [too much of] less physical activities are there.”

India's government has launched a pilot program to spread awareness¹³ about diabetes, to bring the disease under control, especially in the countryside. The task is urgent. Doctors warn cases of diabetes could skyrocket by 150 percent, in the next 20 years.

1 epidemics   

n．流行病

参考例句：

• Reliance upon natural epidemics may be both time-consuming and misleading. 依靠天然的流行既浪费时间，又会引入歧途。
• The antibiotic epidemics usually start stop when the summer rainy season begins. 传染病通常会在夏天的雨季停止传播。

2 diabetes   

n.糖尿病

参考例句：

• In case of diabetes, physicians advise against the use of sugar.对于糖尿病患者，医生告诫他们不要吃糖。
• Diabetes is caused by a fault in the insulin production of the body.糖尿病是由体內胰岛素分泌失调引起的。

3 genetically   

adv.遗传上

参考例句：

• All the bees in the colony are genetically related. 同一群体的蜜蜂都有亲缘关系。
• Genetically modified foods have already arrived on American dinner tables. 经基因改造加工过的食物已端上了美国人的餐桌。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 基因与食物

4 prone   

adj.(to)易于…的，很可能…的；俯卧的

参考例句：

• Some people are prone to jump to hasty conclusions.有些人往往作出轻率的结论。
• He is prone to lose his temper when people disagree with him.人家一不同意他的意见,他就发脾气。

5 metabolic   

adj.新陈代谢的

参考例句：

• Impressive metabolic alternations have been undergone during embryogenesis.在胚胎发生期间经历了深刻的代谢变化。
• A number of intoxicants are associated with metabolic acidosis.许多毒性物质可引起代谢性酸中毒。

6 intake   

n.吸入，纳入；进气口，入口

参考例句：

• Reduce your salt intake.减少盐的摄入量。
• There was a horrified intake of breath from every child.所有的孩子都害怕地倒抽了一口凉气。

7 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

8 frugal   

adj.节俭的，节约的，少量的，微量的

参考例句：

• He was a VIP,but he had a frugal life.他是位要人，但生活俭朴。
• The old woman is frugal to the extreme.那老妇人节约到了极点。

9 vendors   

n.摊贩( vendor的名词复数 )；小贩；（房屋等的）卖主；卖方

参考例句：

• The vendors were gazundered at the last minute. 卖主在最后一刻被要求降低房价。
• At the same time, interface standards also benefIt'software vendors. 同时，界面标准也有利于软件开发商。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

10 gender   

n.（生理上的）性，（名词、代词等的）性

参考例句：

• French differs from English in having gender for all nouns.法语不同于英语，所有的名词都有性。
• Women are sometimes denied opportunities solely because of their gender.妇女有时仅仅因为性别而无法获得种种机会。

11 staple   

n.主要产物，常用品，主要要素，原料，订书钉，钩环；adj.主要的，重要的；vt.分类

参考例句：

• Tea is the staple crop here.本地产品以茶叶为大宗。
• Potatoes are the staple of their diet.土豆是他们的主要食品。

12 commuting   

交换（的）

参考例句：

• I used the commuting time to read and answer my mail. 我利用上下班在汽车中的时间来阅读和答复给我的函电。
• Noncommuting objects are as real to the mathematicians as commuting objects. 对于数学家来说，不可交换的对象与可交换的对象是一样真实的。

13 awareness   

n.意识，觉悟，懂事，明智

参考例句：

• There is a general awareness that smoking is harmful.人们普遍认识到吸烟有害健康。
• Environmental awareness has increased over the years.这些年来人们的环境意识增强了。