French fries and hamburgers are popular with teenagers. Everyone knows that these high-calorie foods can lead to chronic illnesses such as heart disease and high blood pressure, but, according to a report published by Medical Xpress, a study led by the University of Queensland in Australia has found that eating too much junk food can also have an impact on teenagers’ sleep quality.
According to the research results, teenagers who drink more than three soft drinks per day were 55 percent more likely to report sleep disturbance than those who only drink one cup per day. Males who ate fast foods on more than four days per week were 55 percent more likely to report sleep disturbance than those who ate them only once a week, while females were 49 percent more likely to do so.
This global study examined unhealthy diets and stress-related sleep disturbance in high school students from 64 countries. The study found that 7.5 percent of adolescents reported having stress-related sleep disturbance, which was more common among females than males and increased with more frequent consumption of carbonated soft drinks, as did the occurrence of sleep problems. Because carbonated drinks often contain caffeine and large amounts of sugar, while fast foods are high in energy but poor in nutrients, long-term consumption can cause nutritional imbalances.
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These data were collected from global health surveys conducted by the WHO between 2009 and 2016, which included about 170,000 students aged 12 to 15 years from 64 low, middle and high-income countries in Southeast Asia, Africa, South America and the eastern Mediterranean.
The research team said that frequent intake of soft drinks and eating of fast foods is closely associated with sleep problems in teenagers, and that this phenomenon is particularly clear in high-income countries. The research team said that these findings are worrying because poor-quality sleep has an adverse impact on adolescent health and cognitive development. They suggested that policies should be formulated that target these unhealthy behaviors.
(Translated by Julian Clegg, Taipei Times)
Photo: Chen Feng-li, Liberty Times 照片:自由時報陳鳳麗
薯條、漢堡等速食及飲料很受青少年喜愛。眾所皆知這些高熱量食物會導致慢性疾病,如心臟病和高血壓等。不過,「醫療快訊」報導,澳洲昆士蘭大學帶領的一項研究發現,吃過多的垃圾食品還會影響青少年的睡眠品質。
根據研究結果,每天喝三杯以上飲料的青少年自稱有睡眠障礙的機率,比每天只喝一杯軟飲料的青少年高百分之五十五。每週吃四天以上速食的男性自稱有睡眠障礙的機率,比那些每週只吃一次速食的男性高百分之五十五,而女性的機率高出百分之四十九。
這是一項針對全球不健康飲食和與壓力有關的睡眠障礙研究,涉及來自六十四個國家的高中生。研究表明,百分之七點五的青少年自稱有壓力相關的睡眠障礙,其中女性比男性更常見,且隨著碳酸飲料的頻繁飲用而增加,睡眠障礙的比率也愈高。因為碳酸飲料通常含有咖啡因和高糖分,而快餐食品高熱量但較缺乏營養,長期攝取會營養不均衡。
這些數據收集自二○○九年至二○一六年世界衛生組織的全球健康調查,其中包括來自東南亞、非洲、南美部分地區和地中東海東部地區的六十四個低、中、高收入國家的約十七萬名十二至十五歲的學生。
研究團隊表示,青少年經常喝飲料、吃速食與睡眠障礙之間關聯密切,這現象尤其在高收入國家特別明顯。研究團隊指出,這些發現令人擔憂,因為睡眠品質差會對青少年的健康和認知發展產生不利影響。他們建議應針對這些不健康的行為制定相關政策,使青少年能健康成長。
(自由時報)
A: Yet another shopping mall has just opened in Taipei. B: Do you mean the Mitsui Shopping Park LaLaport Nangang? A: Yeah, the shopping mall run by Japanese Mitsui & Co. opened last week. B: I hear the mall features about 300 stores, Vieshow Cinemas and Japanese Lopia supermarket. A: With the opening, a war is breaking out between Taipei’s department stores. A: 台北又有新的購物商場可逛啦。 B: 你是說Mitsui Shopping Park LaLaport 南港? A: 對啊這家日本三井集團旗下的商場上週開幕。 B: 聽說商場有威秀影城、樂比亞日系超市,還有多達300家專櫃。 A: 新商場一開幕,看來又要掀起一場百貨大戰啦! (By Eddy Chang, Taipei Times/台北時報張迪)
A: Hey, didn’t you go to the opening of the Mitsui Shopping Park LaLaport Nangang last week? B: Yeah, there are about 300 shops, including the first overseas branch of Japan’s Mahou Dokoro — a famous Harry Potter-themed store. A: Wow, I’ve always wanted to get a magic wand. B: There are also a bunch of great restaurants, such as Smart Fish hotpot restaurant. A: I wish I had Harry Potter’s “apparition” and “disapparition” magic, so I could teleport to the mall right now. A: 你上週不是有去LaLaport南港的盛大開幕嗎?有什麼特別的? B: 那裡有多達300家專櫃,包括魔法之地的海外首店——它可是日本知名的《哈利波特》專賣店。 A: 哇我一直想買根魔杖。 B: 另外還有各式各樣的美食,像是林聰明沙鍋魚頭。 A: 真希望我也有哈利波特的「現影術/消影術」魔法,能瞬間移動到商場去! (By Eddy Chang, Taipei Times/台北時報張迪)
When it comes to movies, some people delight in watching spine-chilling horror films. Surprisingly, apart from containing a few scares, horror movies may also offer an unexpected __1__. According to a study, watching 90 minutes of a scary movie can burn an average of 113 calories, which is roughly __2__ to taking a 30-minute walk. Researchers from the University of Westminster carried out an experiment in which they __3__ participants’ oxygen intake, carbon dioxide output, and heart rates while they were watching horror movies without any distractions. The results revealed that physiological responses to fear play a crucial role
Dos & Don’ts — 想想看,這句話英語該怎麼說? 1. 你覺得這部電影怎樣? ˇ What do you think of the movie? χ How do you like the movie? χ How do you think of the movie? 註︰What do you think of = What is your opinion of。 think 的受詞是 what,不能用 how。 2. 你認為哪一個歌星唱得最好? ˇ Which singer do you think is the best? χ Do you think which singer is the best? 註︰英語中 which singer 似乎是 do you think 的受詞,實則 do you think 是插入語,其他例子如下: 你以為他喜歡誰? Who do you think he likes? 你以為我住在哪裏? Where do you think I live? 你想我昨天在公園裏碰到了誰? Whom/Who do you think I met in the park yesterday? 3. 他不論到什麼地方,總是帶著一把雨傘。 ˇ No matter where he goes, he