每天两杯橙汁可减少心脏病风险

　　To test their theory that it is hesperidin that gives orange juice its cardiovascular benefits, scientists at the University of Auvergne in France recruited 24 overweight but otherwise healthy middle-aged men.

　　究竟是橘皮苷在橙汁中起到了对心血管的好处吗？为了检验他们的理论，法国奥弗涅大学的科学家们招募了24位体重偏重但其他方面健康的中年男子。

　　Each one spent four weeks drinking half-a-litre of orange juice every day, followed by four weeks where they drank sweetened water and took a capsule containing hesperidin.

　　每个人在四个星期中每天喝半升的橙汁，之后的四周他们喝甜的水并且服用包含橘皮苷的胶囊。

　　In the final four weeks of the experiment, they drank the same water and took a dummy capsule that had no hesperidin in it.

　　在实验最后的四周，他们饮用同样的水并且服用不含橘皮苷的仿制胶囊。

　　The results showed that at the end of the orange juice experiment and the one where they took a hesperidin capsule, there was a significant decline in their diastolic blood pressure.

　　结果显示，在实验的最后，服用含有橘皮苷的胶囊的人的心脏舒张压呈现明显的下降趋势。

　　Average readings were between 3.2 and 5.5mmHg lower than after they took the dummy capsule with water.

　　平均的数字是在3.2-5.5mmHg之间，比他们服用仿制的胶囊和水之后低。

　　In a report on their findings, the researchers said: 'The main result was that four weeks of consuming orange juice, or purified hesperidin, significantly decreased diastolic blood pressure in healthy men.

　　在一份关于调查结果的报告中，研究人员说：“主要的结果是饮用四周的橙汁，或是纯化的橘皮苷，明显地降低了健康男性的心脏舒张压。”

　　'A three to four point reduction in diastolic blood pressure would reduce the incidence of coronary artery disease by 20 per cent.

　　“心脏舒张压3到4个点的降低将减少20%冠状动脉疾病的发病率。”

　　'Hesperidin could be responsible for the observed effects.'

　　“橘皮苷对可观察的效果是有责任的。”

　　However, patients taking blood pressure pills are advised to seek medical advice before drinking more as previous studies suggest certain fruit juices - including orange, grapefruit and apple - can reduce the effectiveness of some drugs.

　　但是，建议服用血压药的患者在服用比前面研究建议的特定果汁（包括橙汁，葡萄汁和苹果汁）多时还是要遵循医嘱，因为这些可能会降低药效。