許多人都把中年發(fā)福歸咎于新陳代謝變慢，然而新研究發(fā)現(xiàn)，中年人的新陳代謝速度和年輕人無(wú)異，60歲后新陳代謝才開(kāi)始減速。也許，中年發(fā)福只是吃得太多，動(dòng)得太少。

Middle-aged spread cannot be blamed on a waning metabolism, according to an unprecedented analysis of the body's energy use.

一項(xiàng)史無(wú)前例的新陳代謝研究指出，不能將中年發(fā)福歸咎于新陳代謝變慢。

The study, of 6,400 people, from eight days old up to age 95, in 29 countries, suggests the metabolism remains "rock solid" throughout mid-life.

這項(xiàng)涵蓋了29個(gè)國(guó)家6400人的研究顯示，人在中年時(shí)期的新陳代謝一直“穩(wěn)如磐石”。研究對(duì)象中，最小的剛出生8天，最高齡的已經(jīng)95歲。

It peaks at the age of one, is stable from 20 to 60 and then inexorably declines.

新陳代謝在1歲時(shí)達(dá)到頂峰，20歲到60歲期間保持穩(wěn)定水平，60歲后開(kāi)始不可阻擋地變慢。

The study, published in the journal Science, found four phases of metabolic life:

這項(xiàng)發(fā)表在《科學(xué)》期刊上的研究發(fā)現(xiàn)，人的一生中新陳代謝可分為四個(gè)階段：

1. birth to age one, when the metabolism shifts from being the same as the mother's to a lifetime high 50% above that of adults

第一階段：出生到1歲。新陳代謝速度最初和母親一致，后來(lái)達(dá)到一生中的最高水平，比成人高出50%。

2. a gentle slowdown until the age of 20, with no spike during all the changes of puberty

第二階段：1歲到20歲。新陳代謝逐漸變慢，整個(gè)青春期都沒(méi)有明顯波動(dòng)。

3. no change at all between the ages of 20 and 60

第三階段：20歲到60歲。新陳代謝毫無(wú)變化。

4. a permanent decline, with yearly falls that, by 90, leave metabolism 26% lower than in mid-life

第四階段：60歲后。新陳代謝速度逐年下降，90歲時(shí)新陳代謝速度比中年時(shí)期慢26%。

"It is a picture we've never really seen before and there is a lot of surprises in it," one of the researchers, Prof John Speakman, from the University of Aberdeen, said.

參與該研究的阿伯丁大學(xué)教授約翰·斯皮克曼稱：“這是我們從未預(yù)料到的，發(fā)現(xiàn)了不少驚人的結(jié)果?！?/p>

"The most surprising thing for me is there is no change throughout adulthood - if you are experiencing mid-life spread you can no longer blame it on a declining metabolic rate."

“最讓我驚訝的是，成年后新陳代謝一直沒(méi)有變化。如果你正在經(jīng)歷中年發(fā)福，你再也不能把這歸咎于新陳代謝變慢?！?/p>

People's metabolism was measured using doubly labelled water.

研究人員用雙標(biāo)記水來(lái)測(cè)量人們的新陳代謝速度。

Made from heavier forms of the hydrogen and oxygen atoms that make up water, this can be tracked as it leaves the body.

重水分子中被標(biāo)記的氫原子和氧原子可以在離開(kāi)身體后被追蹤到。

But doubly labelled water is incredibly expensive, so it took researchers working together across 29 countries to gather data on 6,400 people.

但是雙標(biāo)記水很昂貴，所以該研究通過(guò)29個(gè)國(guó)家科研人員的通力協(xié)作才收集到6400人的信息。

The researchers said fully understanding the shifting metabolism could have implications in medicine.

研究人員表示，充分了解新陳代謝的變化對(duì)于醫(yī)藥學(xué)可能有意義。

Prof Herman Pontzer from Duke University said it could help reveal whether cancers spread differently as the metabolism changes and if drug doses could be adjusted during different phases.

杜克大學(xué)的赫爾曼·龐策教授稱，這將有助于揭示癌癥的擴(kuò)散速度是否會(huì)隨著新陳代謝的變化而有所不同，以及不同年齡段的用藥量是否應(yīng)進(jìn)行調(diào)整。

And there is even discussion about whether drugs that modify the metabolism could slow diseases of old age.

還有人甚至在討論調(diào)節(jié)新陳代謝的藥物是否能推遲老年病的到來(lái)。

Drs Rozalyn Anderson and Timothy Rhoads, from the University of Wisconsin, said the "unprecedented" study had already led to "important new insights into human metabolism".

威斯康星大學(xué)的羅扎林·安德森博士和蒂莫西·羅茲博士稱，這一“史無(wú)前例的”研究帶來(lái)了“關(guān)于人類新陳代謝的重大啟示”。

And it "cannot be a coincidence" diseases of old age kicked in as the metabolism fell.

此外，老年病在新陳代謝變慢時(shí)到來(lái)“絕非偶然”。

Prof Tom Sanders, from King's College London, said: "Interestingly, they found very little differences in total energy expenditure between early adult life and middle age - a time when most adults in developed countries put on weight.

倫敦國(guó)王學(xué)院的湯姆·桑德斯教授稱：“有趣的是，研究人員發(fā)現(xiàn)，青年和中年時(shí)期的新陳代謝速度差異很小，而發(fā)達(dá)國(guó)家的大多數(shù)成年人都是在中年時(shí)期發(fā)胖的?！?/p>

"These findings would support the view that the obesity epidemic is fuelled by excess food energy intake and not a decline in energy expenditure."

“這些研究結(jié)果支持了一個(gè)觀點(diǎn)，就是中年發(fā)福是因?yàn)槭澄飻z取過(guò)量而不是新陳代謝變慢?！?/p>

英文來(lái)源：BBC

翻譯&編輯：丹妮