1 . Tai chi, a traditional form of Chinese martial art that combines slow, gentle movements and postures with mindfulness, is known to increase flexibility and improve balance. Now, a new research suggests it’s better than aerobic (有氧的) exercises for lowering blood pressure in people with prehypertension (高血压前期).
In the study, researchers in China employed 342 adults whose average age was 49. Roughly half the people participated in the supervised aerobic exercise, including jogging, climbing stairs, brisk walking and cycling. The other half was trained to practice tai chi. Both groups got hour-long sessions four times a week.
After 12 months, those in the tai chi group saw bigger drops in their blood pressure than those in the aerobic exercise group. Besides, nearly 22% of the people who practiced tai chi saw their blood pressure fall to within normal range, compared with nearly 16% of people in the aerobic exercise group. Fewer patients in the tai chi group went on to develop hypertension than in the aerobic exercise group.
So what’s it about tai chi that helps lower blood pressure? The practice tends to cause more of a response from the parasympathetic (副交感) nervous system, says Ruth Taylor-Piliae, a professor at the University of Arizona’s College of Nursing, who wasn’t involved in the study. The parasympathetic nervous system is the network of nerves that relaxes your body after periods of stress or danger.
Tai chi is appealing as it requires little space or equipment. “I think the beauty of tai chi is that you don’t have to have a special gym membership,” Taylor-Piliae says. “Once you learn tai chi, you can do it anytime, anyplace and anywhere. It does provide that calming and relaxing effect.”
Studies have also shown practicing tai chi can help reduce the risk of falls, improve balance and walking speed in older adults, and reduce depression and anxiety. “But you have to have enough ‘dose’ of tai chi,” Taylor-Piliae says. “You can’t just do it one hour, one time.”
1. What happened to those practicing tai chi during the study?| A．Some began to have normal blood pressure. | B．Few aged in an unhealthy manner. |
| C．Many went on to develop prehypertension. | D．Most got nervous more easily. |
| A．It needs the least time of practice. | B．It produces a relaxing effect. |
| C．It puts the nervous system in order. | D．It makes its practicer inactive. |
| A．By combining it with dieting. | B．By exercising it as early as possible. |
| C．By practicing it consistently. | D．By balancing it with other workouts. |
| A．Tai Chi Serves as a Convenient Exercise | B．Tai Chi Is Getting Popular Among Foreigners |
| C．Tai Chi ls Critical to Stopping Falls Happening | D．Tai Chi Helps Reduce Blood Pressure Effectively |
2 . Districts across the US are trying to address the high number of students needing mental health support. What if they could enlist students as part of the solution, too? A rural Ohio high school has done just that.
At Claymont High School in Uhrichsville, Ohio, a group of about 21 high schoolers are trained in mental health first aid. They’ve taken courses to learn how to help their peers who are going through a difficult time.
The students, who are in grades 10 through 12, are part of a larger program called Peers Uplifting Peers, or PUP, which helps to break down the stigma (耻辱) around mental health and wellness and normalize having conversations about both and seeking professional help when necessary.
A key part of their training is to help their friends get in touch with professionals and established resources. “Students are helping out by picking up on early warning signs. They are noticing that maybe someone is having a hard day or is just sitting by themselves,” said Kelsi Barnhart, the school’s assistant principal. “They try to be good friends, and they speak up. It’s not that they are stepping in and providing counseling.”
Despite a national conversation around mental health, the context may be different in rural areas like Uhrichsville where people feel ashamed of discussing mental health. “It’s hard to talk about mental health out loud,” said Bridget Britton, a licensed social worker. Getting to a therapist can also be a challenge since most rural areas do not have the bus and rail systems found in urban communities. There are also financial barriers. “Many rural residents work on farms, which often don’t provide workers with health insurance,” she said.
1. What can we learn from paragraph 1?| A．Students face mental health issues. |
| B．Students actively seek mental health help. |
| C．Students are unwilling to share mental health programs. |
| D．Students are getting involved in the mental health program. |
| A．Promoting academic excellence. |
| B．Advocating for stricter school policies. |
| C．Reducing the shame concerning mental well-being. |
| D．Encouraging competitive behavior among students. |
| A．Transportation systems are well-established in rural areas. |
| B．Mental health issues are less taken seriously in rural areas. |
| C．Licensed social workers are readily available in rural communities. |
| D．Financial barriers and lack of insurance prevent access to therapists. |
| A．PUP: Peers taking the lead in high school. |
| B．PUP: Government breaking down the stigma. |
| C．Mental Health: Professionals offering training. |
| D．Mental Health: A pressing issue among students. |
3 . People who experienced trauma (精神创伤) as a child or adolescent were found to be 48 percent more likely to have serious and repeated headaches as an adult than those who had not experienced trauma in their early years, according to research published in the journal Neurology. The finding came from the analysis of data from 28 studies, involving 154,739 people.
Overall, nearly one-third of the participants reported having experienced a traumatic event at least once before age 18, and 16 percent had been diagnosed as an adult with a primary headache disorder, which means that their headaches are the main problem, rather than a symptom (症状) of an underlying disease or condition.
The researchers categorized traumatic events as either threat-based (such as physical or emotional abuse, witnessing or being threatened by violence, and serious family conflicts) or deprivation-based (including neglect, financial trouble, parents’ separation, divorce or death, and living in a household with mental illness, alcohol or substance abuse). Physical abuse and exposure to family violence were among the most commonly reported traumas.
Of those who had experienced at least one traumatic event as a youth, 26 percent subsequently were diagnosed with primary headaches, compared with 12 percent of those who had not experienced trauma.
As the number of traumatic events experienced by a child or adolescent increased, so did the odds of their having headaches later in life. For example, those who had experienced four or more traumatic events were more than twice as likely to have a head ache disorder. Also, certain traumas — physical abuse and neglect — were linked to greater risk for headaches than other types of trauma.
The study found an association between trauma as a youth and headache disorder as an adult, rather than direct proof that one led to the other. But the researchers wrote that traumas experienced as a child or adolescent “are important risk factors for primary headache disorders in adulthood,” which one of the researchers described in a statement released by the American Academy of Neurology as “a risk factor that we cannot ignore.”
1. What does the research focus on?| A．The different types of trauma experienced by children. |
| B．The reasons why headaches are so common among adults. |
| C．The influence that childhood experiences have on later life. |
| D．The link between childhood trauma and headaches as an adult. |
| A．Witnessing violence. | B．Physical abuse. |
| C．The loss of a parent. | D．Criticism from teachers. |
| A．Complexity. | B．Frequency. | C．Seriousness. | D．Chance. |
| A．It causes headaches. | B．It deserves attention. |
| C．It can be prevented. | D．It can be life-threatening. |
4 . Do you love holidays, but hate the increase in weight that follows? You are not alone. Holidays are time for splendid meals and celebrating, especially with the traditional cultural foods.
With proper planning, though, it is possible to keep normal weight during the holidays. The idea is to enjoy the holidays and think about moderation(节制). Whether it is celebrating at the office party or sitting down for the traditional family dinner, regard eating as a time for tasting a variety of foods. Here are some tips to carry you through the round of celebrations and your social calendar without feeling having done wrong.
Set some goals that you can reach. Unless you have special needs to go on a diet, there are no forbidden foods. Don’t turn down the foods you enjoy, but be sensible.
Before you leave home, have a small, low fat meal or a snack. This can help you to avoid eating or drinking much. Use a small size plate and avoid the large ones that may encourage you to “load up”. You should be most comfortable eating an amount of food about the size of your fist. Once you have had your “tasting” serving, move away from the dining room. Doing so will make it easy to stop yourself eating constantly at the sight of food.
Eat slowly and fill up beforehand with clear soup and raw fruit or vegetables and fruit in a yogurt dressing rather than cream and cheese sauces. You can also drink a large glass of water before you eat to help you feel full.
If you have a sweet tooth, try mints, hard candies, and fruit. These don’t have the fat content of creamy desserts and chocolate.
Avoid high fat foods as soon as possible. Dishes that look oil y or creamy may have a generous amount of fat. Choose lean meats. Fill your plate with salad and green vegetables.
Don’t let exercise take a break during the holidays. A 20 minute walk after a meal can help burn off extra calories.
1. Holidays are happy days with pleasure but they may ______.| A．bring weight problems | B．bring you much trouble in your life |
| C．make you worried about your foods | D．make you hate delicious foods |
| A．You must turn down the foods you enjoy, for it is reasonable. |
| B．You can enjoy your favorite foods but don’t eat too much. |
| C．You shouldn’t refuse anything you like and eat it as much as possible. |
| D．You ought to accept what you enjoy and refuse what you don’t. |
| A．drink clear soup and have vegetables only |
| B．not eat too much food in high fat |
| C．still stay in the dining room when you have had your “tasting” serving |
| D．take a break at once after a meal |
| A．students who want to improve their physical condition at school |
| B．teachers who want to have a carefree vacation |
| C．individuals who want to enjoy themselves during the vacation but not want to gain weight |
| D．individuals who want to do exercise to keep fit in their spare time. |
| A．Husband and wife. | B．Teacher and student. | C．Doctor and patient. |
6 . That artificial food dyes (染料) are unhealthy is not news. Some are known to cause hyperactivity (多动症) in some children, affecting their ability to learn. But regulatory agencies (监管机构) around the world don’t necessarily agree on which food dyes are a problem, or why. That may soon change. A 2021 peer-reviewed report by California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment concluded that artificial food dyes “cause or worsen neurobehavioral (神经行为的) problems in some children” and that the current levels that are regarded safe for consumption by the federal government are too high.
California is now considering requiring warning labels on food products and dietary supplements containing the seven most commonly used artificial dyes. The warning label requirement would put California on par with the European Union, which since 2010 has required food products containing certain artificial food dyes to carry warning labels about their negative effect on activity and attention in children.
Artificial dyes are used in foods for one reason: to make products look prettier. Bright colors make candies appealing, especially to kids. But dyes are also in chocolate cake mixes, salad dressings and other products that don’t seem to cry out for a color boost.
In Europe, it was the 2010 label lawmaking that triggered (引发) companies’ decisions to reformulate. “If you’re a company, you do not want to put a warning label on your product.” says Lefferts, an environmental health consultant. Warning labels are why European Starburst Fruit Chews are now colored with natural products, not the artificial dyes that brighten their North American counterparts (同类商品).
Given that artificial food dyes are used far more than needed, we need to be more cautious. After all, we don’t dye fresh fruits and vegetables, but we do dye candy and sprinkles, points out Joe Schwarcz, a chemistry professor at McGill University in Montreal. “The foods in which you find food dyes are foods that are poor in nutrition,” he says. “If you limit foods that contain food dyes, you automatically make your diet better.”
1. What can we learn about artificial food dyes from paragraph 1?| A．A 2021 report confirmed their negative effects. |
| B．The fact that they are harmful is newly revealed. |
| C．Regulatory agencies consider them a serious problem. |
| D．The Federal government thinks their current standard too high. |
| A．In opposition to. | B．In line with. | C．Ahead of. | D．Behind. |
| A．Food companies will stop coloring their products. |
| B．More fresh fruits and vegetables will appear in the market. |
| C．Food companies may replace artificial dyes with natural products. |
| D．It will be hard to find packaged foods without warning labels of dyes. |
| A．Approving. | B．Neutral. | C．Tolerant. | D．Concerned. |
1. Why is the man giving the woman the information?
| A．They had a conversation on this topic before. |
| B．She is reading books on this subject. |
| C．He is giving her tasks. |
| A．To clear harmful chemicals. |
| B．To remind people of injuries. |
| C．To produce pleasant feelings. |
| A．Diet. | B．Sleep. | C．Physical exercise. |
| A．Purchase a pet. |
| B．Enjoy meaningful moments with her family. |
| C．Visit friends and have dinner with them. |
8 . Many people think that being healthy is a difficult task that involves lots of dieting and time at the gym.
Drink more water. Adults should drink 2-3 liters of water per day, while children should drink 1—2 liters.
Think positively. A simple positive change on a situation can turn an challenge into an opportunity. Not only will you have more interest for life, but your immune（免疫的） system can also fight off colds and heart disease better!
Get a good night's rest. Getting too little sleep or poor-quality sleep not only makes you easier to get sick, but also increases the time you need to recover from illness. When you sleep well, you can wake up ready to go and be more active all day.
| A．Exercise wisely. |
| B．But that’s actually not true! |
| C．To start this difficult step, focus on gratitude. |
| D．That is in addition to other drinks like tea or coffee. |
| E．So sleeping properly is very important for your health! |
| F．Soon, you'll start to see your healthy life taking shape! |
| G．So instead of walking quickly on Wednesday, go to hit the pool. |
| A．Read his X-ray. | B．Go to the hospital. | C．Argue with the woman. |
| A．Boss and secretary. | B．Receptionist and patient. | C．Doctor and nurse. |
