英文阅读二肥胖对身体建康的危害
Belly fat has long been thought to be particularly bad for your heart, but now, a new study adds more evidence to the idea that it may also be bad for your brain.
长期以来，人们都认为腹部肥胖对心脏特别不好，但现在一项新研究提出的新证据表明，它可能还对你的大脑有害。
The study, from the United Kingdom, found that people who were obese and had a high waist-to-hip ratio (a measure of belly fat) had slightly lower brain volumes, on average, compared with people who were a healthy weight. Specifically, belly fat was linked with lower volumes of gray matter, the brain tissue that contains nerve cells.
英国的这项研究发现，肥胖者以及腰臀比（腹部脂肪衡量指标）高的人比起那些体重健康的人来说，平均的脑容量要稍微小一些。具体来说，腹部肥胖和脑灰质含量低有关。脑灰质是含有神经细胞的脑组织。
"Our research looked at a large group of people and found obesity, specifically around the middle, may b e linked with brain shrinkage,” lead study author Mark Hamer, a professor at Loughborough University’s School of Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences in Leicestershire, England, said in a statement.
该研究报告的第一作者、英国莱斯特郡拉夫堡大学的运动、锻炼及健康科学学院的教授马克·哈默尔在一项声明中表示：“我们的研究调查了一大群人，然后发现肥胖，尤其是腰腹部肥胖，可能和脑部萎缩有关。”
Lower brain volume, or brain shrinkage, has been linked with an increased risk of memory decline and dementia.
该研究指出，脑容量更小，或者说是脑部萎缩，和记忆衰退以及痴呆的风险增加有关联。
The new findings, published Jan. 9 in the journal?Neurology, suggest that the combination of obesity (as measured by body mass index, or BMI) and a high waist-to-hip ratio may be a risk factor for brain shrinkage, the researchers said.
这些新发现1月9日发表在《神经学》期刊上。研究指出，肥胖加上高腰臀比可能是脑部萎缩的一个风险因素。研究人员通过身体质量指数来衡量一个人是否肥胖。
However, the study found only an association between belly fat and lower brain volume, and cannot prove that carrying more fat around the waist actually causes brain shrinkage. It could be that people with lower volumes of gray matter in certain brain areas are at a higher risk of obesity. Future studies are needed to tease out the reasons for the link.
不过，这项研究只是发现了腹部脂肪和脑容量小之间的关联，并不能证明肚子上的肉会导致脑部萎缩。也可能是脑部特定区域灰质较少的人更容易肥胖。要梳理出这个关联的前因后果，还需进行更多研究。
Dangerous fat 危险的肥肉
Belly fat, also called visceral fat, is fat that’s stored de ep within the abdominal cavity. It’s tied to greater health risks than subcutaneous fat, or fat that’s stored just under the skin. Previous studies have linked visceral fat with a higher risk of heart disease (including heart attack and stroke), Type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure and premature death, according to the Mayo Clinic.
腹部脂肪也被称为“内脏脂肪”，是堆积在腹腔内部深处的脂肪。它们比皮下脂肪的健康风险还要高。梅奥医学中心指出，先前的研究已经发现了内脏脂肪和更高的心脏疾病（包括心脏病发作和中风）、二型糖尿病、高血压和早逝风险之间的关联。
Some previous studies have also found a link between visceral fat or a high waist-to-hip ratio and lower brain volume, but these studies tended to be small and did not look at the combined effect of BMI and waist-to-hip ratio.
先前的一些研究也发现了内脏脂肪或高腰臀比和脑容量小之间的关联，但是那些研究规模都比较小，而且也没有考虑身体质量指数和腰臀比的混合效应。
