《长安的荔枝》你觉得怎么样？

昨晚，《长安的荔枝》迎来收官，相关话题引发热议。

借（cèng）此（gè）机（rè）会（diǎn），我们就来看看多年前由“荔枝”引发的怪病。

🤔️小作业：

1.Why were poorer children more vulnerable to the illness described in the article?

A. They consumed more fruit than wealthier children.

B. They were more likely to skip evening meals and eat fallen lychees.

C. They had weaker immune systems due to malnutrition.

D. They lacked education about food safety.

无注释原文：

Indian children died after 'eating lychees on empty stomach'

From: BBC

US and Indian scientists say a mystery illness that killed more than 100 children a year in northern India was caused by eating lychees on an empty stomach.

For more than two decades, apparently healthy children in a region of Bihar suffered sudden seizures and lost consciousness.

Almost half died, baffling doctors.

New research, published in the medical journal The Lancet, now suggests they were poisoned by the fruit.

Hypoglycin

Most of the victims were poor children in India's main lychee-producing region who ate fruit that had fallen on to the ground in orchards, the journal said.

Lychees contain toxins that inhibit the body's ability to produce glucose, which affected young children whose blood sugar levels were already low because they were not eating dinner.

They woke screaming in the night before suffering convulsions and losing consciousness as they suffered acute swelling of the brain.

Researchers examining sick children admitted to hospital in Muzaffarpur between May and July 2014 found a link to an outbreak of sickness that caused brain swelling and convulsions in children in the Caribbean.

That outbreak was caused by the ackee fruit, which contained hypoglycin, a toxin that prevents the body from making glucose. Tests then showed that lychees also contained hypoglycin.

This led health officials to tell parents to make sure young children got an evening meal and limit the number of lychees they were eating.

Children suffering symptoms associated with the outbreak should be rapidly treated for hypoglycaemia, or low blood sugar, officials said.

The number of reported cases of the sickness has since fallen from hundreds each year to about 50, the New York Times reported.

- ◆ -

注：完整题目见本文开头；中文文本为BBC官方译文+机器翻译，仅供参考

含注释全文：

Indian children died after 'eating lychees on empty stomach'

From: BBC

US and Indian scientists say a mystery illness that killed more than 100 children a year in northern India was caused by eatinglycheeson an empty stomach.

美国和印度的科学家解开了每年要导致印度北部超过100名孩子丧生的怪病之谜。这个神秘怪病的病根就是"空腹吃荔枝"。

lychee

lychee /ˈlaɪ.tʃiː/ 表示“荔枝；荔枝树”，英文解释为“a fruit with a rough, brown shell and sweet, white flesh around a large, shiny, brown seed, or the evergreen tree (= one that never loses its leaves) on which this fruit grows”

For more than two decades, apparently healthy children in a region of Bihar suffered suddenseizuresand lostconsciousness.

二十多年来，印度比哈尔省明明健康的孩子突然就不行了、丧失知觉。

seizure

seizure /ˈsiːʒə/ 1）表示“占领，夺取，攫取；查封，没收，充公”，英文解释为“the action of taking something by force or with legal authority”，如：the seizure of power/property/control 对权力/财产/控制权的攫取。

2）表示“心脏病突发”，英文解释为“a sudden failure of the heart”举个🌰： He died of a seizure. 他死于心脏病突发。

也可以泛指疾病的骤发，突发，发作，英文解释：a very sudden attack of an illness in which someone becomes unconscious or develops violent movements，如：an epileptic seizure 癫痫突发。

consciousness

consciousness /ˈkɒn.ʃəs.nəs/ 表示“意识；感觉；觉悟”，英文解释为“the state of understanding and realizing something”举个🌰：Her consciousness that she's different makes her feel uneasy. 意识到自已与众不同，她感到很不自在。

Almost half died,bafflingdoctors.

差不多一半的孩子会丧命，让医生们不得其解。

baffle

baffle /ˈbæf.əl/ 表示“使困惑，使迷惑”，英文解释为“to cause someone to be completely unable to understand or explain something”举个🌰：She was completely baffled by his strange behaviour. 她完全被他怪异的举动搞糊涂了。

New research, published in the medical journal TheLancet, now suggests they werepoisonedby the fruit.

最新研究发表在医学期刊《柳叶刀》上，表明这些孩子都死于"荔枝中毒"。

Lancet

the Lancet /ˈlɑːn.sɪt/ 1）表示“（英国医学刊物）《柳叶刀》”，英文解释为“a British professional journal published every week containing articles about all areas of medicine”

2）表示“（医生用的）柳叶刀，小刀”，英文解释为“a small knife with two cutting edges and a sharp point that a doctor uses when cutting the skin”

poison

poison /ˈpɔɪ.zən/ 作动词，表示“毒杀，毒害，使中毒”，英文解释为“to kill a person or animal or to make them very ill by giving them poison”举个🌰：Four members of the family had been poisoned, but not fatally. 这家中有四口人被人投毒，但未致命。

Hypoglycin 次甘氨酸

Most of the victims were poor children in India's main lychee-producing region who ate fruit that had fallen on to the ground inorchards, the journal said.

《柳叶刀》称，大多数受害者是印度荔枝主产区的贫困儿童，他们吃了果园里掉在地上的荔枝。

orchard

orchard /ˈɔː.tʃəd/ 表示“果园”，英文解释为“an area of land where fruit trees (but not orange trees or other citrus trees) are grown”如：an apple/cherry orchard 苹果/樱桃园。

Lychees containtoxinsthatinhibitthe body's ability to produceglucose, which affected young children whose blood sugar levels were already low because they were not eating dinner.

荔枝含有的毒素会抑制人体产生葡萄糖的能力，这对那些因为没有吃晚饭而血糖水平已经很低的幼儿造成了影响。

toxin

toxin /ˈtɒksɪn/ 表示“毒素”，英文解释为“A toxin is any poisonous substance produced by bacteria, animals, or plants.”

inhibit

1）表示“阻止；阻碍；抑制”，英文解释为“to prevent sth from happening or make it happen more slowly or less frequently than normal”举个🌰：A lack of oxygen may inhibit brain development in the unborn child. 缺氧可能阻碍胎儿的大脑发育。

2）表示“使…拘谨；使…有顾忌”，英文解释为“to prevent someone from doing something by making them feel nervous or embarrassed ”举个🌰：Some workers were inhibited (from speaking) by the presence of their managers. 一些工人在他们的经理面前不敢讲话。

glucose

glucose /ˈɡluːkəʊz/ 表示“葡萄糖”，英文解释为“Glucose is a type of sugar that gives you energy.”

They woke screaming in the night before sufferingconvulsionsand losing consciousness as they sufferedacute swellingof the brain.

他们在夜里惊醒尖叫，然后因脑部急性肿胀而抽搐并失去知觉。

convulsion

convulsion /kənˈvʌl.ʃən/ 通常复数，表示“惊厥；抽搐，痉挛”，英文解释为“a sudden movement of the muscles in your body that you cannot control, caused by illness or drugs”举个🌰：She went into convulsions and had to be rushed to hospital. 她全身抽搐，被迅速送到医院。

acute

acute /əˈkjuːt/ 1）表示“严峻的”，英文解释为“You can use acute to indicate that an undesirable situation or feeling is very severe or intense.”举个🌰：There is an acute shortage of water. 水严重短缺。

2）表示“（疾病）急性的”，英文解释为“an acute illness is one that has quickly become severe and dangerous”如：acute appendicitis 急性阑尾炎。

📍2024年报告Part 2提到：地缘政治冲突加剧，Geopolitical conflicts became more acute,

📍-cute来自拉丁语“acutus”，意味着“尖锐，敏锐”。想象宫殿中的一把剑，其刃口非常锋利，能够精准快速地切割任何物体，象征着“acute”的敏锐和迅速。近义词：sharp（锐利的），同根词：acuteness（敏锐），常用短语：acute awareness（敏锐的意识）

swelling

swelling /ˈswel.ɪŋ/ 表示“肿大处，肿胀处；肿块”，英文解释为“a part of your body that has become bigger because of illness or injury”举个🌰：Put your foot into cold water to help the swelling go down. 把脚放到凉水里泡一下，有助于消肿。

swell本身作动词，表示“使增大; 增大；肿胀，肿，膨胀”，英文解释为“to become larger and rounder than usual; to (cause to) increase in size or amount”举个🌰：Last year's profits were swelled by a fall in production costs. 去年因生产成本下降，利润有所增加。

Researchers examining sick childrenadmittedto hospital in Muzaffarpur between May and July 2014 found a link to an outbreak of sickness that caused brain swelling and convulsions in children in the Caribbean.

研究人员对2014年5月至7月间穆扎法尔布尔医院收治的患病儿童进行了检查，发现这与加勒比海地区出现在孩子们身上的一种脑肿和抽搐的病症很像。

admit

表示“接收…入院；收治”，英文解释为“to allow someone to enter a hospital because they need medical care”举个🌰：She was admitted to hospital suffering from shock. 她因中风被送入医院救治。

That outbreak was caused by theackeefruit, which contained hypoglycin, a toxin that prevents the body from making glucose. Tests then showed that lychees also contained hypoglycin.

那种病是由西非荔枝果引起的。西非荔枝果含有抑制人体产生葡萄糖的毒素次甘氨酸。随后科学家们对荔枝进行化验，发现荔枝中也含有次甘氨酸。

ackee

ackee /ˈæk.i/ 表示“阿开木；西非荔枝”，英文解释为“a fruit similar in appearance to a large pear, which is popular in Jamaica cooked as a savoury (= not sweet) dish”举个🌰：Lunch was a plate of ackee and salt cod, a traditional Jamaican dish. 午餐是一盘阿开木煮咸鳕鱼，这是一道牙买加的传统菜肴。

This led health officials to tell parents to make sure young children got an evening meal and limit the number of lychees they were eating.

这促使医生们告诉家长，一定要让孩子晚上吃饭，而且吃荔枝也不能过量。

Children suffering symptoms associated with the outbreak should be rapidly treated forhypoglycaemia, or low blood sugar, officials said.

医生们说，出现与此相关症状的儿童应立即按低血糖接受救治。

hypoglycaemia

hypoglycaemia /ˌhaɪ.pəʊ.ɡlaɪˈsiː.mi.ə/ 表示“低血糖”，英文解释为“a medical condition resulting from dangerously low levels of sugar in the blood”

The number of reported cases of the sickness has since fallen from hundreds each year to about 50, the New York Times reported.

据《纽约时报》报道，此后每年当地丧生的孩子从几百人，下降到大约50人。

- 词汇盘点 -

lychee、seizure、consciousness、baffle、Lancet、poison、orchard、toxin、inhibit、glucose、convulsion、acute、swelling、admit、ackee、hypoglycaemia

- 词汇助记 By AI -

After eating lychee from a local orchard, children suffered seizure, convulsion, and lost consciousness. Doctors were baffled until The Lancet linked ackee-like toxin to hypoglycaemia, showing it inhibits glucose production, causing acute swelling. Many were admitted for poison treatment.

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