糖，何时变成了全民公敌？

From+theweek.com

提起糖，很多人首先想到是五颜六色的糖果，是甜爽好喝的饮料，是美味的饼干糕点，是“美好”“甜蜜”的感觉。但是，随着健康意识的逐渐加强，人们对过量食糖的危害有了更新的认识，糖也由人人喜欢变成了备受指责。这，究竟是为什么呢？

Many experts believe that sweetened foods have caused a global health crisis. Whats so bad about sugar？ Heres everything you need to know：

许多专家认为加糖食品引起了一场全球健康危机。糖到底有什么坏处？你需要知道的都在这里：

How

How

Became Public

Enemy No. 1

Why is sugar in the spotlight？

For years， dieticians have warned us to steer clear of1） fat and cholesterol2）—the two food evils long believed to be fueling the Wests obesity， diabetes， and heart disease epidemics3）. But a growing number of nutritionists are now pointing the finger at sugar， arguing that our overconsumption of sodas， candy， cookies， and other sweets and processed foods is the real cause of our health crisis. Some go even further， arguing that sugar is an addictive “poison” that causes a whole host of degenerative4） ailments—including cancer—even in thin people. Evidence has emerged that shows the sugar industry may have downplayed5） those risks for profit—turning the modern Western diet into the sweetest in human history. “Were in a whole new world of sugar consumption，” says Barry Popkin， professor of nutrition at the University of North Carolina. “We dont really know what that means for our health.”

糖為何会成为焦点？

多年来，饮食保健专家一直警告我们要远离脂肪和胆固醇——这两种食品恶魔长期以来一直被视作是西方肥胖症、糖尿病以及心脏病流行的幕后推手。但现在越来越多的营养学家将矛头指向了糖，他们认为健康危机的真正原因是我们食用了过量的碳酸饮料、糖果、饼干以及其他甜品和加工食品。有的把问题说得更严重，认为糖是一种让人上瘾的“毒药”，导致了包括癌症在内的大量退行性疾病，连瘦人也难以幸免。有证据表明制糖业为了获取利润，可能将这些风险轻描淡写，近代西方的饮食也因此达到了人类历史上最甜的程度。北卡罗来纳州大学营养学教授巴里·波普金说：“在糖的消耗方面我们正处于一个全新的世界。我们并不确定这对健康而言意味着什么。”

How much sugar do we consume？

The average American adult downs 22 teaspoons of the stuff a day， the average child 32. The World Health Organization recommends just six teaspoons a day. Added sugars—those not found naturally in fruit and vegetables， like table sugar and high-fructose6） corn syrup7）—began to proliferate in the Western diet in the mid-20th century， just as scientists were starting to discover links between sugar and heart disease. The sugar industry decided to push back against this research， adopting the aggressive tactics of Big Tobacco8）. First， as memos uncovered last September reveal， an industry group paid three Harvard nutritionists $6，500—about $50，000 today—to divert the blame. In a 1967 New England Journal of Medicine article， the nutritionists discounted the evidence against sugar and concluded there was “no doubt” the best way to prevent heart disease was to reduce cholesterol and saturated fat. “This is quite what we had in mind，” one sugar industry executive said when he saw the article.

人們食用的糖量有多少？

每个美国成年人日均食用22茶匙糖，儿童食用32茶匙。而世界卫生组织建议的日食用量仅为6茶匙。添加糖于20世纪中期广泛出现在西方的食品中，它是指那些不是在水果或蔬菜中天然形成的糖，比如砂糖和高果糖玉米糖浆。几乎同时，科学家们开始揭开糖与心脏病之间的关系。制糖业决定像大型烟草公司一样采取主动出击的策略，阻止这项研究。去年9月份披露的备忘录显示，首要的措施是由一个行业团体向三名哈佛大学的营养学家支付6，500美元（相当于现在的50，000美元），从而转移人们指责的目标。在《新英格兰医学杂志》1967年发表的一篇文章中，这几名营养学家对那些不利于糖的证据持怀疑态度，并做出定论认为，预防心脏疾病的最佳方法“毫无疑问”是减少摄入胆固醇和饱和脂肪。一名制糖业主管看到这篇文章后说：“这正是我们想说的。”

What did Big Sugar do next？

The industry launched an aggressive advertising campaign in the 1970s to convince Americans that sugar actually helps you lose weight by suppressing the appetite. “Sugar can be the willpower you need to undereat，” one ad asserted； another recommended eating a cookie before lunch each day. That campaign， combined with work by the Harvard researchers， helped muddy9） the scientific waters enough to keep dietary sugar guidelines vague. The American Heart Association approved of added sugar as part of a healthy diet， and millions of Americans embraced low-fat， high-sugar diets. Consumption of added sugars soared 30 percent between 1977 and 2010. Its no coincidence， many nutritionists say， that obesity rates more than doubled over that same period.

制糖业巨头之后还干了什么？

制糖业在20世纪70年代发起了一轮强劲的广告攻势，努力让美国民众相信，糖实际上能通过降低食欲帮助人们减肥。一则广告声称：“糖是您减少食量所需的精神支柱。”另一则广告则建议每天午饭前吃一块曲奇饼干。这一轮攻势加上哈佛大学研究人员的工作，在科学上混淆了视听，使得关于糖的饮食指南一直处于含糊不清的状态。美国心脏病协会认可添加糖是健康饮食的一部分，数百万美国人接受了低脂高糖的饮食。1977年至2010年期间，添加糖的食用量陡增了30%。许多营养学家认为，肥胖率在这一时间翻了一倍还多并不是偶然。

1. steer clear of：绕开，避开

2. cholesterol [k??lest?r?l] n. 胆固醇

3. epidemic [?ep??dem?k] n. 流行病

4. degenerative [d??d?en（?）r?t?v] adj. （疾病）变性的，退行性的

5. downplay [?da?n?ple?] vt. 对……轻描淡写

6. fructose [?fr?kt??s] n. 果糖

7. corn syrup：玉米糖浆

8. Big Tobacco：通常指全球五大烟草公司：菲利浦.莫里斯公司（Philip Morris International）、英美烟草（British American Tobacco）、帝国烟草（Imperial Brands）、日本烟草公司（Japan Tobacco International）、中国烟草总公司（China Tobacco）。

9. muddy [?m?di] vt. 使浑浊

New Oriental English .

Why is sugar so bad for us？

Scientists have found that refined sugar， which is made up of fructose and glucose carbohydrates10）， is harder to metabolize11） than the purely glucose-based carbohydrates found in potatoes and other starches12）. While glucose is converted into energy by every cell in the body， fructose is mainly metabolized in liver cells. When a person consumes too much fructose， many nutritionists say， the liver becomes overwhelmed and begins converting it into fat， some of which gathers in the liver. An accumulation of fat in the liver can cause insulin resistance13）， which disrupts the bodys ability to maintain stable levels of blood sugar and fat， leading to heart disease and diabetes. Anti-sugar advocate Gary Taubes contends that insulin resistance is a primary driver of obesity， and can also give rise to dementia14） and some cancers. “If Im right about sugar，” says Taubes， “then its more harmful ultimately than smoking.”

糖為何对我们这么有害？

科学家发现，由果糖和葡萄糖碳水化合物构成的精炼糖要比单纯的葡萄糖碳水化合物更难代谢，后者可在土豆以及其他淀粉食物中产生。葡萄糖可由体内所有的细胞转化为能量，果糖却主要在肝细胞中进行代谢。许多营养学家声称，人们如果摄入过量的果糖，肝脏就会招架不住，开始将果糖转换为脂肪，其中一些脂肪将堆积在肝脏。而脂肪在肝脏的堆积将导致胰岛素产生抗性，扰乱人体维持血糖和脂肪平衡的能力，进而引发心脏疾病和糖尿病。反糖倡导者加里·陶布斯认为，胰岛素抗性是肥胖症的主要致因之一，并且还可能导致痴呆症和一些癌症。他说：“要是我对糖的看法没有错，那么它的最终危害更甚于吸烟。”

. New Oriental English

10. carbohydrate [?kɑ?（r）b???ha?dre?t] n. [有化]碳水化合物；[有化]糖类

11. metabolize [m??t?b?la?z] vt. 使新陈代谢

12. starches [stɑ?（r）t??z] n. [复]淀粉质食品

13. insulin resistance：胰岛素抗性，指脂肪细胞、肌肉细胞和肝细胞对正常浓度的胰岛素产生反应不足的现象。

14. dementia [d??men??] n. [内科]痴呆

15. lace [le?s] vt. 在（食物、饮料）中添加

16. artery [?ɑ?（r）t?ri] n. 动脉

17. triglyceride [tra??ɡl?s?ra?d] n. [有化]甘油三酸酯

18. wash down：（以水或者饮料）冲咽

19. ballot [?b?l?t] n. （无记名）投票

20. saccharin [?s?k?r?n] n. [有化]糖精

21. Sweet N Low：纤而乐，一种代用糖的品牌

22. savory [?se?v?ri] adj. 咸的；辛辣的

23. ketchup [?ket??p] n. 番茄酱

24. recreational drug：消遣性毒品

25. intravenous [??ntr??vi?n?s] adj. 静脉内的

Do all nutritionists agree？

No. Some， including Fred Brouns， professor of Health Food Innovation at Maastricht University in the Netherlands， argue that sugars effects remain “poorly investigated and highly controversial.” The problem with all nutritional science is that its difficult to monitor diets over the years-long time span needed to track the causes of degenerative diseases. But theres no doubt that were lacing15） modern supermarket food with concentrated sugar in a way that isnt replicated in nature. Kimber Stanhope， a nutritional biologist at University of California-Davis， ordered her staff to eat enough fruit to get 25 percent of their daily calories from sugar—the quantity she has shown raises the level of artery16）-clogging triglycerides17） in the blood. Four out of seven of the subjects had to quit. “It was more fruit than they could bear to eat，” says Stanhope. Yet you can easily get that same amount of sugar by washing down18） a couple of brownies with a can of Coke.

是不是所有营养学家都这么看？

并非如此。有些营养专家认为，在糖对健康的影响方面，“调查不足且充满争议”。荷兰马斯特里赫特大学健康食品创新学教授弗雷德·布龙斯就是持此观点的一员。所有营养科学都面临一个问题：跟踪退行性疾病的致因需要数年时间，可是对饮食的监测却难以持续这么久。但毫无疑问，人们在现代超市食品中添加了大量的浓缩糖，而在自然界中这种方式是无法复制的。加州大学戴维斯分校营养生物学家金伯·斯坦诺普要求她的员工食用大量水果，以使从糖中摄入的卡路里量达到每天摄入总量的25%。她已表明这一摄入量将提高血液中甘油三酸酯的含量，而甘油三酸酯是导致血管堵塞的原因。在参与实验的七名员工中，有四名不得不选择退出。“他们实在吃不下那么多水果。”斯坦诺普说。但是，只要吃两个巧克力蛋糕再喝上一听可乐，就可以轻松摄入这个数量的糖。

What can be done？

Individuals can choose to limit their sugar intake—but that requires avoiding nearly all processed foods. Public officials are also trying to nudge society at large toward making healthier choices. In the 2016 election， three California cities passed ballot19） measures imposing taxes on sugary sodas. But conservatives largely oppose these so-called sin taxes， arguing that people should have the freedom to do what they want to their bodies. To cut down on sugar， some people have switched to zero-calorie artificial sweeteners， like the saccharin20）-based Sweet N Low21）. But little is known about the long-term effects of these chemical substitutes on the body. And because such products can be up to 13，000 times sweeter than sugar， they can trick the body into craving even more calories. “Dont be fooled，” says metabolism researcher Susan Swithers. “We were once led to believe that ‘light and ‘low tar cigarettes are better choices than regular cigarettes，” she says. “Neither choice is actually healthy.”

我们能做些什么？

我们可以选择控制糖的摄入量——但这就要求我们不吃几乎所有的加工食品。政府官员也在极力引导社会大众做出更加健康的选择。在2016年的美国选举中，加利福尼亚州的三座城市以无记名投票的方式，通过了对含糖汽水征税的措施。但保守人士却普遍反对这些所谓的罪恶税。他们认为怎么对待自己的身体是人们应有的自由。为了降低糖的摄入量，有的人已经转向零卡路里的人工甜味剂，比如以糖精为主的纤而乐（一种代用糖的品牌）。但这些化学替代物对人体会有怎样的长期影响，人们却知之甚少。而且这些产品比糖要甜13，000倍，故而会哄骗人体摄入更多的卡路里。“别被忽悠了，”新陈代谢研究人员苏珊·斯维泽说，“我们曾经以为‘轻淡型和‘低焦油香烟要好于普通香烟。实际上，这两种选择都不健康。”

Americas favorite drug

Sugar is everywhere. Eighty percent of supermarket foods contain it—and purportedly “savory22）” foods often contain more sugar than sweet treats like ice cream. Whole-wheat bread can have a teaspoon of sugar per slice； Heinz tomato ketchup23） contains 22.8 percent sugar， twice as much as Coca-Cola. As we swamp our bodies with sugar， we only become more addicted. A 2016 study in Nature Neuroscience suggested that sugar hijacks the brain by triggering its reward system， pushing the body to ask for more and more. Sugar might even be more addictive than recreational drugs24）， says cardiovascular research scientist James DiNicolantonio. “When you look at animal studies comparing sugar to cocaine， even when you get the rats hooked on intravenous25） cocaine， once you introduce sugar， almost all of them switch to the sugar.”

美國最受欢迎的毒品

糖无处不在。80%的超市食品都含糖。而且，据说“咸味”食品经常要比冰淇淋这样的甜品含糖量更大。每片全麦面包中的糖可达到一茶匙。亨氏番茄酱的含糖量达到22.8%，是可口可乐的两倍。而随着糖铺天盖地地涌入体内，我们只会变得更加上瘾。《自然神经科学》2016年发表的一份研究表明，糖通过激发脑内的奖励机制，将大脑劫持，促使人体不断提出需求。研究心血管病的科学家詹姆斯·迪尼科兰托尼奥说：“糖甚至有可能比消遣性毒品更容易让人上瘾。在比较糖和可卡因影响的动物研究中，哪怕你通过静脉注射使小白鼠对可卡因上瘾，一旦你用了糖，几乎所有的小白鼠都会转向糖。”