WE-练习 | VOA: Are You Getting Enough Sleep-听力资源

练习 | VOA: Are You Getting Enough Sleep

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VOA Special 2017 健康生活带练习新闻听力

你的睡眠时间充足吗？（带练习|新闻听力）

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睡眠是维持身体机制健康运转的一个重要途径。睡眠时，人体会产生含有抗体的蛋白质，保证免疫系统的有效运行。华盛顿大学的研究员华生研究了11对双胞胎在睡眠时长不同的情况下身体机能的表现，结果表明，充足的睡眠对人体健康有着至关重要的作用。

VOA: Are You Getting Enough Sleep?
你的睡眠充足吗?

燕山大学刘立军宋葳编写

◇TRANSCRIPT

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

We spend about one-third of our lives asleep. This may sound like a lot of time, but it is not wasted.

Our bodies need sleep to stay healthy. Not getting enough sleep, or as we sometimes say shut-eye, can make us sick.

The immune system protects the body from diseases and infections. Not getting enough sleep hurts this protective system.

The Mayo Clinic is a nonprofit research hospital in the United States. Its website explains that when we sleep our bodies release proteins that support sleep and help us fight infections. They add that infection-fighting antibodies and cells are reduced during periods when you don't get enough sleep.

A new study from the University of Washington in the U.S. seems to confirm this. Dr. Nathaniel Watson was the lead writer of the study. He is also co-director of the university's Medicine Sleep Center at Harborview Medical Center.

Watson says his study shows that the immune system works best when the body gets enough sleep.

For the study, Watson and his team studied 11 pairs of identical twins. This is an important difference from other sleep studies. Other research did not study identical twins.

The identical twins, however, had different sleep patterns. Researchers found that the twin who slept less had a weaker immune system.

Watson says his study showed for the first time that a long-term lack of sleep shuts down parts of the immune system. He says parts that move white blood cells around the body are affected. White blood cells fight infection in the body.

Watson adds that the results confirm a finding of other sleep studies. They found that when sleep-deprived people are given a vaccine, fewer antibodies are produced. If sleep-deprived people are then exposed to a virus, he says, "they are more likely to get the virus."

Watson's study provides more evidence that sleep is important to "overall health and well-being." And sleep is especially important to immune health.

The researchers published their findings in the journal Sleep.

To stay in good health, experts at the Mayo Clinic say that adults should get seven to eight hours of sleep. Teenagers need nine to 10 hours. And school-aged children may need more than 10 hours of sleep a night.

Experts say the quality and quantity of our sleep becomes poor as we age. This happens because brain circuits that control sleep slowly begin to weaken.

Experts say the process begins in our 30s. By the time we reach our 50s, the average person has lost 50 percent of their ability to have a restful sleep.

These people also have trouble falling asleep and staying asleep through the night. From middle age on, they say these problems only get worse, and they can affect our health.

The website Health.com lists several signs that may mean you are not getting enough sleep.

You're always hungry or you've gained weight. A lack of sleep can affect the hormones that tell your brain you have eaten enough.

You have trouble making decisions. A lack of sleep may affect your higher level brain functions, such as problem solving.

You have trouble remembering things. Sleep helps prepare the brain for new memories.

You feel very emotional. People who are sleep deprived may feel unable to control their emotions, whether they be angry, sad or happy.

Your skin doesn't look good. When we sleep, the body repairs damaged cells, like skin cells. (We don't call it beauty sleep for nothing!)

You are having trouble seeing. When you're tired you may not be able to control your eye muscles.

There are things people can do get better sleep.

Health experts recommend exercise and avoiding work on computers and electronic devices before bed. A cool room is also a better environment for sleeping.

And that's the Health &Lifestyle report.

I'm Anna Matteo.

Adapted from 你的睡眠时间充足吗？

◇VOCABULARY

1. protein n. a natural substance found in meat, eggs, fish, some vegetables, etc. There are many different proteins and they are an essential part of what humans and animals eat to help them grow and stay healthy. 蛋白质。例如：
○ essential proteins and vitamins必不可少的蛋白质和维生素
○ protein deficiency蛋白质缺乏
○ Peas, beans and lentils are a good source of vegetable protein. 豌豆、豆荚和扁豆是植物蛋白质的大好来源。

2. antibody n. a substance that the body produces in the blood to fight disease, or as a reaction when certain substances are put into the body 抗体（血液中抵抗疾病或当某些物质进入身体时产生反应的物质）

3. identical adj. identical (to/with sb./sth.) similar in every detail 完全同样的；相同的。例如：
○ a row of identical houses完全一样的一排房子
○ Her dress is almost identical to mine. 她的连衣裙和我的几乎一模一样。
○ The number on the card should be identical with the one on the chequebook. 卡上的号码应该和支票簿上的相同。
○ The two pictures are similar, although not identical. 这两幅画很相似，虽然不完全相同。

4. vaccine n. a substance that is put into the blood and that protects the body from a disease 疫苗；菌苗。例如：
○ a measles vaccine麻疹疫苗
○ There is no vaccine against HIV infection. 现在还没有防艾滋病病毒传染的疫苗。

5. hormone n. a chemical substance produced in the body or in a plant that encourages growth or influences how the cells and tissues function; an artificial substance that has similar effects 激素；荷尔蒙。例如：
○ growth hormones生长激素
○ a hormone imbalance激素失调
○ Oestrogen is a female sex hormone. 雌激素是一种雌性荷尔蒙。

◇QUESTIONS
Read the table. Then listen to the news and fill in the blanks of the table with the words you hear.

Topic	Supporting detail
Sleep and our immune system	The immune system protects the body from ___________________________. Not getting enough sleep hurts this ___________________________.
	Watson says his study shows that the immune system works best when ________________________________.
	For the study, Watson and his team studied 11 pairs of identical twins. This is an important difference from other sleep studies. Other research did not study _____________________.
	Watson's study provides more ______________ that sleep is important to "overall health and well-being." And sleep is especially important to _________________________.
How much sleep is enough?	To stay in good health, experts at the Mayo Clinic say that adults should get _________________ hours of sleep. Teenagers need ______________________ hours. And school-aged children may need _______________ hours of sleep a night.
	Experts say the quality and quantity of our sleep becomes ______________ as we age. This happens because brain circuits that control sleep slowly _______________________.
	Experts say the process begins in our __________. By the time we reach our 50s, the average person has lost _________ percent of their ability to have a restful sleep.
	These people also have trouble ___________________ and ___________________ through the night. From middle age on, they say these problems only get worse, and they can affect our health.
Signs you may not be getting enough sleep	You're always _______________ or you've gained ________________.
	You have trouble __________________________. A lack of sleep may affect your higher level brain functions, such as problem solving.
	You have trouble _________________________.
	You feel very _______________________.
	Your skin doesn't __________________.
	You are having trouble __________________.
How to improve your sleep?	Health experts recommend ___________________ and _______________________________ and ______________ before bed.
	A cool room is also a better environment for sleeping.

◇KEY

1. diseases and infections
2 protective system
3. the body gets enough sleep
4. identical twins
5. evidence
6. immune health
7. seven to eight
8. nine to 10
9. more than 10
10. poor
11. begin to weaken
12. 30s
13. 50
14. falling asleep
15. staying asleep
16. hungry
17.weight
18.making decisions
19. remembering things
20. emotional
21. look good
22. seeing
23. exercise
24. avoiding work on computers
25. electronic devices

时长：6.2分钟

语速：139wpm

来源：刘立军、宋葳 2017-09-18

练习 | VOA: Are You Getting Enough Sleep

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