VOA慢速英语2019 科学家称新的饮食可能拯救地球

Scientists Say New Diet May Save Planet

From VOA Learning English, this is the Health and Lifestyle report.

欢迎收听美国之音学习英语栏目，这里是健康与生活频道。

Scientists in London say they have found the best diet for both humans and the planet.

伦敦数位科学家表示，他们发现了对人类和地球极好的饮食方式。

If the world followed the so-called “planetary health” diet, the scientists told Reuters that each year more than 11 million early deaths could be prevented.

如果全球都能遵循所谓的“地球健康”饮食方式，那么根据科学家在接受路透社采访时所说的那样：每年，都能避免1100多万人死亡。

For the health of the planet, they claim the same diet would reduce greenhouse gases and save more land, water and animals.

为了地球的健康，这些科学家还表示，通过这种健康的饮食方式就能减少温室气体的排放，也能拯救更多的水土和动物。

This new food plan is the result of a three-year project organized by The Lancet health journal. It involved 37 experts from 16 countries.

这项新的饮食计划是某为期3年的项目研究成果，该项目是由《柳叶刀》健康杂志组织。该项目有来自16个国家的37位专家参与。

Tim Lang, a professor at Britain’s University of London, co-led the research. He told Reuters, “The food we eat and how we produce it determines the health of people and the planet, and we are currently getting this seriously wrong.”

蒂姆是英国伦敦大学的教授，他是该研究的联合牵头人。他在接受路透社采访时表示，我们所吃的食物以及我们制作食物的方式决定了人类和地球是否健康。他还表示，我们现在的方式是大错特错。

Lang added that the world’s population is expected to grow to 10 billion people by 2050. If we want to feed everyone, he explained, we all need to change what we eat and the way we eat by “improving food production and reducing food waste.”

他补充表示，全球人口预计在2050年之前增长到100万。他表示，如果我们要供养这样的体量，那么我们所有人都要变更所吃的食物和饮食方式，改变的方法就是提升粮食产量，并减少垃圾的总量。

So, what do you eat on the planetary health diet?

那么，所谓对地球健康的饮食方式是以什么为食呢？

The scientists who created this diet say it is largely plant-based but still has small amounts of dairy, fish and meat. The diet calls for cutting red meat and sugar by 50 percent and doubling the amount of nuts, fruits, vegetables and legumes.

创制这种饮食方式的科学家表示，这种饮食方式是以植物为主，但依然包含少量的奶制品和鱼肉。这种饮食方式需要将红肉和糖的摄入减少50%，同时加倍摄入坚果、水果、蔬菜和豆类植物。

Food situations around the world are not equal. In certain areas, this would mean great changes. People in North America, for example, eat 6.5 times the recommended amount of red meat. On the other hand, people in South Asia eat only half the amount suggested by the new planetary health diet.

世界各地的饮食情况并不均衡。在部分地区，这种饮食方式意味着要做出许多重大改变。以北美洲的人为例，他们摄入的红肉量是推荐量的6.5倍。而南亚的人摄入的红肉量仅为新地球健康饮食方式推荐量的一半。

Meeting the targets for vegetables would need big changes in other areas. In sub-Saharan Africa, people on average eat 7.5 times the suggested amount of vegetables like potatoes and cassava.

满足摄入蔬菜量的目标需要在其他地方做出诸多巨大改变。在撒哈拉以南非洲，人均摄入蔬菜量是推荐量的7.5倍，这样的蔬菜包括但不限于土豆和木薯。

Walter Willet of Harvard University in the United States also talked to Reuters about the planetary health diet. He said that more than 800 million people around the world do not get enough food while many more have very unhealthy diets.

沃特·维勒特是美国哈佛大学的工作人员，他也就地球健康饮食方式的话题接受了路透社的采访。他表示，全球各地有8亿多人没有足够的口粮，但还有更多人是饮食方式不健康。

The scientists admit their goal will be difficult to achieve. But for them doing nothing is also not an option. Willet said, “If we can’t quite make it, it’s better to try and get as close as we can.”

科学家承认他们的目标很难实现，但对于他们来说，坐以待毙也是不可以的。如果我们无法实现目标，那么尝试一下并尽可能接近于目标是更好的选择。

Words in This Story

diet – n. the food and drink that a person or animal usually takes

greenhouse gas – n. any of various gaseous 1 compounds (such as carbon dioxide or methane) that absorb infrared 2 radiation, trap heat in the atmosphere, and contribute to the greenhouse effect

journal – n. a periodical dealing 3 especially with matters of current interest

legume – n. any of a large group of plants (as peas, beans, and clover) with fruits that are pods which split into two parts and root nodules containing bacteria that fix nitrogen

cassava – n. a tropical plant with thick roots that are used to make small white grains (called tapioca) that are used in cooking