Strong sense of smell may be linked to longer life 擁有敏銳嗅覺的人會(huì)長(zhǎng)壽

周恩紅

海詞積累

1. ongoing adj. 仍在進(jìn)行的

2. identify v. 識(shí)別;辨認(rèn)

3. subject n. 被試者

4. investigation n. 調(diào)查

5. launch v. 發(fā)起

6. sensitive adj. 敏感的

7. make a difference 有影響

Older adults with a poor sense of smell may die sooner than those who have a better sense of smell， a new study suggests.

The study was a project of researchers in the United States that was ongoing for over 13 years. They asked nearly 2，300 men and women to identify 12 common smells. All the subjects were from 71 to 82 years of age. The researchers gave the adults scores， from zero to as high as 12， based on how many smells they identified correctly. During 13 years of follow-up investigation， over 1，200 of the subjects died.

When the study was launched， none of the adults were weak. They could walk a little under half a kilometer， climb 10 steps and inde-pendently complete daily activities. In the latest findings， the researchers noted that those with a weak nose were 30 percent more likely to die by year 13 than people with a good sense of smell.

Honglei Chen was the lead writer of a report on the study. He said the connection between a poor sense of smell and an increased risk of dying was limited to adults who first reported good-to-excellent health. This suggests that a poor sense of smell is an early and sensitive sign of worsening health before it is recognizable in medical tests.

People who took part in the study in good health were 62 percent more likely to die by year 10 if they had a poor sense of smell. But smell did not appear to make a meaningful difference in death rates for people who were in a poor state of health at the start of the study. With a poor sense of smell， people were more likely to die of brain and heart diseases， but not of cancer or breathing disorders.

The results also suggest that a poor sense of smell may be an early warning of poor health in older age. These often signal the beginning of a weakening of the mind or body.

The connection between a poor sense of smell and mortality risk did not appear to change based on sex or race. It also did not change based on individuals other qualities， such as the way they live or ongoing health conditions.

Reading Check

1. What were the subjects basic conditions when they joined the research？

A.They were all in a good state of health.

B.They suffered from a poor sense of smell.

C.They could tell twelve common smells in all.

D.They lived independently from their children.

2. What can a poor sense of smell indicate according to the text？

A.We have to go through medical tests.

B.We are more likely to have a bad mood.

C.We are in the face of dying at an early age.

D.Our physical conditions are becoming worse.

3. Which disease is related to a poor sense of smell？

A.Cancer. B.Depression. C.Heart attack. D.Breathing disorders.

Language Study

Important sentences

1. The researchers gave the adults scores， from zero to as high as 12， __________（base） on how many smells they identified correctly. 研究人員根據(jù)成年人能夠正確識(shí)別的氣味種類的多少給成年人從0到12分進(jìn)行打分。

【點(diǎn)石成金】此空應(yīng)填入based。be based on為固定詞組，意為“以……為基礎(chǔ)”，在句中作狀語。一般來說，符合“be+過去分詞+介詞”結(jié)構(gòu)的詞組在句中作狀語時(shí)，其應(yīng)該用過去分詞形式，故正確答案為based。

2. People __________ took part in the study in good health were 62 percent more likely _________ （die） by year 10 if they had a poor sense of smell. 參加研究時(shí)身體好的人們?nèi)绻嵊X不好的話，有62%的可能性會(huì)早10年離世。

【點(diǎn)石成金】第一空應(yīng)填入who或that，當(dāng)People為先行詞時(shí)，關(guān)系代詞在句中作主語時(shí)應(yīng)該用who或that引導(dǎo)定語從句;第二空應(yīng)填入to die，be likely to do sth 為固定短語，意為“可能做某事”。