1 . When colds and flu hit, many people naturally turn to over-the-counter(OTC) medicines (非处方药) to push through and treat their symptoms. Although these medicines are easily accessible and widely used, it might come as a surprise to many people to learn that they are not risk-free. A study estimated that every year, 26, 735 people went to the emergency room for problems related to OTC cold and cough medicines.
When two or more drugs are used together, their interactions can sometimes produce unexpected harmful effects. Doctors are typically knowledgeable about possible drug interactions, so it is very important for patients to ask their healthcare providers which OTC medicines are safe for them to use.
It is important to read the package ingredients (成分) of OTC medicines closely to avoid duplication of doses (剂量重复). Cold medicines are typically made up of various ingredients, including pain relievers, nasal decongestants and cough suppressants or expectorants. A person who takes a single-ingredient medicine paired with one of these multi-ingredient medicines can receive an unsafe dose of that ingredient.
While everyone could experience bad effects from cold and flu medicines, some groups —including older adults, children and pregnant women—may be at greater risk.
Older people who are using prescribed (处方的) drugs to treat different health conditions may have a higher risk of drug interactions because of the higher number of medicines being used at the same time to treat different conditions. The aging body is not as expert at absorbing, distributing and clearing medicines as younger bodies are. This can put older adults at higher risk for an overdose and drug-to-drug interactions with some medicines.
The Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention do not recommend giving cold medicines to children under age 4. Because of a variety of factors, young children have a higher risk of an accidental overdose and adverse events that could lead to death.
1. What does the author suggest patients do in paragraph 2?| A．Ask for advice from doctors. | B．Buy medicines from hospitals. |
| C．Take drugs as early as possible. | D．Read the package ingredients of drugs. |
| A．To provide a medical choice for people who catch a cold. |
| B．To show cold medicines are more likely to cause bad effects. |
| C．To explain OTC medicines often have more than one ingredient. |
| D．To stress the importance of learning about medicines' ingredients. |
| A．They cannot face aging positively. |
| B．They are more easily affected by diseases. |
| C．Their body cannot deal with medicines easily. |
| D．Their desire for health makes them take more medicines. |
| A．OTC medicines may not be safe |
| B．Tips for taking over-the-counter drugs |
| C．How to deal with an OTC drug overdose |
| D．Should medicines be available “over the counter” ? |
2 . Many think 2024 could be the year more people have the tools to follow through on New Year’s resolutions about weight loss. If they can afford them and manage to stick with them, people can turn to a new generation of remarkably effective weight-loss drugs, also called GLP-1s, which offer the potential for substantial weight loss.
Wegovy, which was approved in 2021, and Zepbound, which got the nod from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2023, are the most effective publicly available weight-loss drugs ever made. Wegovy has been shown to help people shed as much as 16% of their body weight, in combination with exercise and diet. Zepbound’s highest dose, along with lifestyle changes, has helped people lose as much as 27% of their body weight over 18 months.
Although long-term data isn’t available, these drugs appear to be the safest to date. A large number of people suffer from gastrointestinal distress (肠胃不适) on the medications, including vomiting, nausea and diarrhea; but more serious side effects, like those previous weight-loss drugs, have been rare. Wegovy also appears to reduce the risk of a repeating heart attack or stroke for people with pre-existing disease.
So far, both drugs have been hard for patients to access. Suppliers have had trouble making enough of the medicines to meet the skyrocketing demand. And insurance companies haven’t covered the cost of the drugs, which can run from about $1,000 to over $1,300 a month.
Paying for them should become easier in 2024, as supplies rise up and insurance companies could bow to market pressure and cover more of the cost.
Also in the new year, there are more GLP-1 drugs on the way and in more forms. Both Wegovy and Zepbound are delivered as weekly shots. Pill versions are under development as are other medications, some of which could help people lose even more weight.
There’s a major unknown factor with these drugs, which could become better understood in the coming years. Experts can’t say if people will be able to keep the weight off if they don’t make lifestyle changes and stop taking the drugs.
1. What is Paragraph 3 mainly about?| A．The side effects of the two drugs. | B．The safety of the two drugs. |
| C．The advantages of the two drugs. | D．The doubt about the two drugs. |
| A．The technology to make the medicines is not mature. |
| B．They are expensive, sold at around $1,000 for each shot. |
| C．They are not currently included in the medical insurance. |
| D．There are no pill versions of the two drugs on the market. |
| A．They are mainly injected into patients at present. |
| B．They can effectively reduce weight by 27% per year. |
| C．The doubt about the drugs will be cleared in the coming year. |
| D．The drugs will substantially solve the weight issue once and for all. |
| A．Doubtful. | B．Critical. | C．Objective. | D．Hopeful. |
| A．To apply for a new job. | B．To make an apology. | C．To make an appointment. |
4 . I have been a healthcare assistant with Marie Curie for four years. What led me to join this remarkable organization was a deeply personal experience.
Seven years ago, my father was in the hospital, and I was informed that he was in the end-of-life stage. He had wanted to be at home during his final moments, so I arranged for him to return home. He spent only one more night there, but he wasn’t alone. A Marie Curie nurse was by our side. Facing the emotions that come with knowing a loved one is at the end of their life can be heartbreaking. Having a nurse with us made it easier to deal with these feelings. That’s when I made the decision to join Marie Curie.
Working for the charity, I find myself on duty during most Christmases. We operate every single day, including holidays. You might assume that being with families during their last Christmas, knowing it’s a difficult time for the person they’re caring for, would be a sad experience. But what may surprise you is that it’s not. The families, in my experience, are not sad. They make the most of the time they have left and they remain positive for everyone knows what’s coming. They understand that their loved one is dying, but it’s not a time for sorrow, it’s a time of togetherness and warmth. I remember one particular family — three sisters — and the fourth was in the end-of-life stage. When I arrived, she was in a critical condition, and I knew she might not make it through the night. But sitting with the sisters, talking about their childhood, recalling what happened in the past was a special time. They mentioned that their sister had asked for peaches and cream earlier that day, and they made sure she got what she wanted. She went to sleep, and we lost her that night.
We can’t change what happens to us, but we can make a difference. We provide support through the stages of sadness and struggles. And, surprisingly, people may not suffer that much.
1. What can we learn about Marie Curie from the passage?| A．It is a remarkable healthcare organization for benefit. |
| B．It is one of the most volunteer organizations in the world. |
| C．It won’t offer the service during some important festivals. |
| D．It can be a big comfort to those facing their beloved ones’ death. |
| A．Because of the special relationship between them. |
| B．Because of their unusual and abnormal behaviour. |
| C．Because of the countless hardship the family has suffered. |
| D．Because of the family’s courage and calmness facing misfortune. |
| A．Actions speak louder than words. | B．Misfortune might be an actual blessing. |
| C．Where there is action, there is difference. | D．All things are difficult before they are easy. |
| A．Devoted and caring. | B．Gifted and generous. |
| C．Hardworking and honest. | D．Sensitive and determined. |
5 . “I never thought that I would beat the tumor.” says a cancer patient in Lanzhou in Northwest China’s Gansu province. The man adds that he is particularly grateful for heavy ion therapy he received, at a follow-up visit following several rounds of treatment revealing that his cancer cells had disappeared.
A research team from the Institute of Modern Physics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences has developed the country’s first medical heavy ion accelerator with independent intellectual property rights, and put it into clinical application. Cancer treatments employing heavy ion accelerators can bombard a target with high-energy electrons to kill cancer cells. Compared to traditional therapy such as radiation, heavy ion treatment is considered to be more balanced, exposing healthy cells to less radiation. The treatment period is shorter and the therapy can more effectively control cancer cells.
In 1993, researchers proposed to carry out basic research on heavy ion cancer treatment during an academic conference held in Tianshui, Gansu. In 2006, China followed the United States, Japan and Germany to become the fourth country to successfully carry out heavy ion clinical treatment, when four cancer patients participated in preliminary clinical trials for heavy ion therapy. In 2015, China’s first such accelerator, with independent intellectual property rights, rolled off the production line in Wuwei, in Gansu. On March 26, 2020, the accelerator was put into operation, and by the end of June this year, more than 750 patients completed their therapy at Wuwei’s heavy ion treatment center, with remarkable curative effects. The follow-up statistics showed that the three-year local tumor control rate reached 84 percent among 46 clinical trial participants.
Heavy ion therapy is highly effective in treating a wide range of solid tumors and can be used in cases where surgery is not possible or unsuitable, when a patient is sensitive to conventional radiation therapy, or prone to relapse following such therapy. This includes tumors located in the central nervous system, head, neck, skull base, chest and abdomen. So far there have been several cases where people have recovered from cancers by the therapy.
1. Why is the man in para.1 mentioned?| A．To celebrate a successful treatment. | B．To bring up a new kind of therapy. |
| C．To show his cancer cells had disappeared. | D．To show the man is brave and lucky. |
| A．China is the first country to carry out heavy ion clinical treatment. |
| B．In 2006, the United States, Japan and Germany successfully carried out heavy io n clinical treatment. |
| C．Heavy ion cancer treatment is more beneficial to patients than traditional therapies such as radiation. |
| D．Heavy ion cancer treatment is of great help in treating a certain kind of tumor. |
| A．The time of the heavy ion cancer treatment. |
| B．The reason why researchers develop heavy ion cancer treatment. |
| C．Persons benefiting from heavy ion cancer treatment. |
| D．The development of heavy ion cancer treatment in China. |
| A．To give some successful examples of the new treatment |
| B．To explain the process of the new treatment. |
| C．To show the difficulty of the new treatment. |
| D．To conclude the value of the new treatment. |
6 . Shenzhen in Guangdong province has become the first city in China to allow specialist nurses to prescribe (开药方) selected drugs and order tests, in a move that is expected to increase efficiencies in the healthcare system and reduce the patient-load burden on physicians.
Under a new rule in October that took effect in January, eligible nurses will be permitted to order examinations, treatments considering their expert skills and knowledge of specialist nursing or community healthcare. Their prescriptions must be based on existing diagnoses (诊断) made by physicians.
To become a nursing specialist, applicants should have a bachelor’s degree in nursing, five years of working experience, obtained an advanced nursing qualification and have attended a months-long specialist training program and passed a final test.
“Medical institutions must review inappropriate prescriptions given by nurses,” said the regulation. “Nursing specialists who are found to have given three or more improper prescriptions will have their prescribing power stopped for three to six months and will have to undergo retraining before regaining the authorization,” it added.
“Considering the difference in professional positioning, medical education background and work experience between physicians and nurses, it is necessary to fully analyze the necessity and practicability of the nurses’ prescriptive authority,” the commission said.
Zhou Wensi has a bachelor’s degree in nursing and is now a specialist nurse in periodontitis (牙周炎) , or gum disease, at Shenzhen Stomatology Hospital in the city’s Pingshan district.
“Our hospital has not begun allowing us to prescribe. If the rule goes into effect in the future, we’ll likely be able to directly prescribe mouthwash, anti-inflammatory drugs and painkillers to patients,” she said.
However, she also noted that most patients visiting the hospital are in need of treatment delivered by doctors with assistance from nurses like her, so the new regulation is not expected to have a major impact.
1. Why does Shenzhen give permission for specialist nurses’ special rights?| A．To improve the overall ability of the specialist nurses. |
| B．To speed up the development of the healthcare system. |
| C．To enhance the work efficiency and lighten doctors’ load. |
| D．To respond to the demands of doctors, nurses and patients. |
| A．well-recognized | B．Qualified | C．flexible | D．hard-working |
| A．A specialist nurse should follow the rules strictly. |
| B．No institutions take charge of the prescriptions . |
| C．Not all specialist nurses can prescribe drugs freely . |
| D．A specialist nurse always has the prescribing power. |
| A．Doubtful. | B．Indifferent. | C．Neutral. | D．Hopeful. |
7 . How to Create a Home First Aid Kit
Emergencies can happen anytime, anywhere, so having a properly stocked first aid kit in your home is an easy but essential part of good emergency preparation. Here are some useful tips for you to personalize your own first aid kit.
Pick a good container. You can buy pre-filled first aid kits, and you can also buy empty first aid kit containers.
Teach your family about the kit.
Keep your kit up-to-date. No one wants to fetch a first aid kit and find the bandage box empty or the painkillers expired.
Create a checklist to include with the kit. Stock your first aid kit and record every item on a sheet of paper you can keep it in the kit. Record amounts and expiration dates next to the listed items on the checklist you include in your kit.
| A．Make sure anyone who retrieves the kit knows what it includes and does not include. |
| B．Make sure everyone in your home knows the location of the kit and when to retrieve it. |
| C．Make your kit safely accessible. |
| D．But you almost already have a perfectly good first aid kit container in your home. |
| E．Keep track of supply amounts and expiration dates regularly. |
| F．Make your kit clearly recognizable. |
| G．Or you can buy a first aid kit in the store. |
8 . Scientists have developed a blood test to diagnose Alzheimer’s disease without the need for expensive brain imaging or a painful lumbar puncture, where a sample of cerebrospinal (脑脊髓的) fluid (CSF) is drawn from the lower back.
Current guidelines recommend detection of three distinct markers: abnormal accumulations of amyloid (淀粉样蛋白) and tau proteins, as well as neurodegeneration—the slow and progressive loss of neuronal cells (神经元细胞) in specified regions of the brain. This can be done through a combination of brain imaging and CSF analysis. However, a lumbar puncture can be painful and people may experience headaches or back pain after the procedure, while brain imaging is expensive and takes a long time to schedule. Thomas Karikari at the University of Pittsburgh, who was involved in the study, said,” A lot of patients, even in the US, don’t have access to MRI and PET scanners. Accessibility is a major issue.”
The development of a reliable blood test would be an important step forwards. “A blood test is cheaper, safer and easier to conduct, and it can improve clinical confidence in diagnosing Alzheimer’s and selecting participants for clinical trial and disease monitoring,” Karikari said.
Although current blood tests can accurately detect abnormalities in amyloid and tau proteins, detecting markers of nerve cell damage that are specific to the brain has been harder. Karikari and his colleagues around the world focused on developing an antibody-based blood test that would detect a particular form of tau protein called brain-derived tau,which is specific to Alzheimer’s disease.
They tested it in 600 patients at various stages of Alzheimer’s and found that levels of the protein correlated well with levels of tau in the CSF,and could reliably distinguish Alzheimer’s from other neurodegenerative diseases.
The next step will be to validate the test in a broader range of patients, including those from varied racial backgrounds, and those suffering from different stages of memory loss or other potential dementia symptoms.
1. What does Paragraph 2 mainly talk about concerning the current detection method?| A．Its reliability | B．Its importance | C．Its complexity. | D．Its disadvantages |
| A．They created a blood test to detect brain-derived tau. |
| B．They developed a medicine to cure Alzheimer’s disease. |
| C．They found a way to safely draw CSF from patients’back. |
| D．They discovered protein to help diagnose Alzheimer’s disease. |
| A．Invent. | B．Confirm | C．Forecast. | D．Prohibit. |
| A．To raise people’s awareness of Alzheimer’s disease. |
| B．To question a common view about Alzheimer’s disease. |
| C．To introduce an approach to detecting Alzheimer’s disease. |
| D．To provide evidence for the symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease. |
9 . I had always been fascinated by the use of natural treatments in healthcare. So, when I came across a local clinic that offered courses in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) several months ago, I immediately signed up for a one-year course.
On the first day of class, I was looking forward to what I was going to learn. As the instructor explained the procedure, I felt a little disturbed by the thought of needles being stuck into my skin. However, I was determined to overcome my fear. Acupuncturist uses hair-thin needles to find specific areas on the body to treat pain or tension the body may be experiencing, known to help with depression, insomnia (失眠) and anxiety. The instructor told us that an acupuncturist might request patients to provide more information about their health, how to treat them, and what points are most appropriate for them. We were taught how to examine a patient’s tongue and pulse to gather evidence of any imbalances in the body. He showed us how to adjust the needle’s depth, as different organs required different depths. The needles were only a few millimetre thick and made of stainless steel, so they were solid and easy to switch out.
In class, we also learned about the phenomenon of acupuncture anesthesia (麻醉) where patients could undergo surgery without conventional anesthesia using only acupuncture. As we progressed through the course, we learned about herbs and their uses. We also discussed the effects of substances such as alcohol, tobacco, and drugs on the body and how they could lead to severe anxiety and abuse.
TCM dates back to ancient China, and it is a widespread practice today. It is fascinating to learn about the symbolism behind each organ and how they relate to different emotions and imbalances in the body. After a year of wrestling with the course, I have now graduated and put everything in place. Without doubt, it has been one of the most fulfilling experiences in my life.
1. What made the author decide to sign up for a TCM course?| A．His worries about health problems. | B．His interest in natural treatments. |
| C．An accidental visit to a local clinic. | D．The increasing knowledge of TCM. |
| A．The development of acupuncture. | B．The way to perform acupuncture. |
| C．The requirement for an acupuncture. | D．The various tools used in acupuncture. |
| A．Easy. | B．Complicated. | C．Advanced. | D．Worthy. |
| A．An encounter with TCM | B．A modern change in TCM |
| C．A course to improve my fitness | D．A special acupuncture treatment |
1. What time is it?
| A．9: 00 a. m. | B．9: 10 a. m. | C．9: 20 a. m. |
| A．Cold. | B．Hot. | C．Normal. |
