第1525期:Why stress makes you fat

Have you ever had a stressful day? Many people do in the course of their daily lives. And on these high-pressure days, they might find themselves reaching for a sugary snack. Perhaps this is part of their daily routine. Or perhaps on this particular day, their self-control is a bit low and they feel compelled to take a sugar hit.你有过紧张的一天吗？许多人在日常生活中都会这样做。在这些高压日子里，他们可能会发现自己正在寻找含糖零食。也许这是他们日常生活的一部分。或者也许在这个特定的日子，他们的自控力有点低，他们觉得不得不吃糖。Stress is natural. That feeling of strain or pressure is a biological response, and under the right circumstances can be a great source of motivation. However, too much stress, especially chronic stress, has been linked to sleep disruption, a higher likelihood of a stroke, heart-attack, ulcer or depression, among other things.  But why should stress make a person comfort eat?压力是自然的。这种紧张或压力的感觉是一种生理反应，在适当的情况下可以成为动力的重要来源。然而，过多的压力，尤其是慢性压力，与睡眠中断、中风、心脏病、溃疡或抑郁症的可能性增加等有关。但是，为什么压力要让人安心吃饭呢？Dr Giles Yeo, a member of the BBC’s Trust Me, I’m a Doctor team, got together with scientists from Leeds University to conduct an experiment into the effect of stress on blood sugar. Dr Yeo was subjected to a stress test. In the first stage, he was forced to answer mathematical questions rapidly. In the second, he had to immerse his hand in a bath of ice-cold water for a period of time.Giles Yeo 博士是 BBC 的“信任我，我是医生”团队的成员，他与利兹大学的科学家们一起进行了一项关于压力对血糖影响的实验。Yeo 博士接受了压力测试。在第一阶段，他被迫快速回答数学问题。第二次，他不得不将手浸入冰冷的水浴中一段时间。Before and after these tests, the Leeds scientists would measure Dr Yeo’s blood sugar levels. These are the levels which rise when we eat as our body takes in the energy of the food. In a healthy person, these levels quickly return to normal. However, when Dr Yeo was being deliberately subjected to stress, his blood sugar took six times longer to drop than on a stress-free day.在这些测试之前和之后，利兹科学家将测量 Yeo 博士的血糖水平。当我们的身体吸收食物的能量时，这些水平会上升。在一个健康的人中，这些水平很快就会恢复正常。然而，当 Yeo 医生故意承受压力时，他的血糖下降时间是没有压力的一天的六倍。When we become stressed, our bodies enter ‘fight or flight’ mode. Because our body believes it’s under attack, it releases glucose into the blood to provide energy for muscles. However, if we don’t use that energy, our body then releases insulin to make the blood sugar levels drop. This drop causes a hunger response: you want to eat. And what you particularly crave is sugary food, which rapidly replenishes the energy you have lost. If this happens repeatedly, over a long enough period, these high-calorie foods can lead to obesity.当我们感到压力时，我们的身体会进入“战斗或逃跑”模式。因为我们的身体认为自己受到了攻击，所以它会将葡萄糖释放到血液中，为肌肉提供能量。然而，如果我们不使用这种能量，我们的身体就会释放胰岛素，使血糖水平下降。这种下降会引起饥饿反应：你想吃东西。而你特别渴望的是含糖食物，它能迅速补充你失去的能量。如果这种情况反复发生，在足够长的时间内，这些高热量食物会导致肥胖。So what can we do to combat the stress? In an article for the BBC, Dr Michael Mosley recommends ‘stress-busting’ techniques, like exercise, gardening, mindfulness or another activities that you enjoy. But his strongest recommendation is trying to get a good night’s sleep. A recent study carried out by researchers at King's College, London found that if you deprived people of sleep, they would consume, on average, an extra 385kcal per day, which is equivalent to the calories in a large muffin. So, try sleeping to decrease stress, and as a result make it easier to keep yourself a little trimmer.那么我们能做些什么来对抗压力呢？在 BBC 的一篇文章中，Michael Mosley 博士推荐了“消除压力”的技巧，比如锻炼、园艺、正念或其他你喜欢的活动。但他最强烈的建议是尽量睡个好觉。伦敦国王学院的研究人员最近进行的一项研究发现，如果你剥夺人们的睡眠，他们平均每天会多消耗 385 卡路里，这相当于一个大松饼的卡路里。所以，试着睡觉来减轻压力，从而让自己更容易保持苗条。词汇表sugary snack 含糖的零食self-control 自控力compelled 不得不地a sugar hit 由糖带来的一时的刺激chronic stress 慢性压力，长期不断的压力sleep disruption 睡眠中断stroke 中风heart-attack 心脏病发作ulcer 溃疡depression 抑郁，忧郁comfort eat 安慰性饮食blood sugar 血糖stress-free 无压力的glucose 葡萄糖insulin 胰岛素high-calorie 高热量的obesity 肥胖combat stress 克服、对抗压力stress-busting 减压的keep yourself trimmer 使你保持苗条身材

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