爲什麼吃水果和蔬菜能長出健康大長腿
You already known that eating lots of fruits and vegetables is good for the arteries in your heart, but a new study found that it can help reduce blockages in your legs, too.
你早已知道多吃水果和蔬菜對你的心臟動脈有益，但一項新研究發現：這也能幫助緩解腿部的血液不暢。Researchers studied data from nearly 3.7 million people, whose mean age was 64 years old and found that people who ate at least three servings of fruits and vegetables each day lowered their risk of developing peripheral artery disease. Peripheral artery disease, or PAD, occurs when the peripheral arteries serving your stomach, arms, head, and most commonly the legs, narrows due to plaque build up.
研究員們研究了近370萬人，他們平均64歲。研究員們發現：每天至少吃三份水果和蔬菜的人能降低患外周動脈疾病的風險。由於血小板堆積起來，肚子、手臂、頭和腿周邊的外周動脈因此收縮時，人們就會患外周動脈疾病（PAD）。"Our study gives further evidence for the importance of incorporating more fruits and vegetables in the diet," lead author Dr. Sean Heffron, instructor at New York University School of Medicine, said in a story on Sci News.
"我們的研究進一步證明多吃水果和蔬菜的重要性，"首席作者肖恩·赫夫龍在Sci News的一篇文章中說道，他同時還是紐約大學醫學院的講師。
For the study, people across the United States completed questionnaires and medical tests measuring blood pressure in the ankle and forearm. About 6 percent of participants had PAD and 29.2 of participants actually ate three or more servings of produce each day.
爲進行這項研究，研究員們請美國的老百姓填寫了問卷、對他們進行醫療檢查，檢測他們踝關節和前臂的血壓。約6%的參與者患有外周動脈疾病，29.2%的參與者每天真的會吃三份及三份以上的農產品。
"Our study confirmed that Americans' overall fruit and vegetable intake remains dismally low," the authors said in Sci News. The team said that the lower risk levels were consistent even after age, gender, race, smoking and cardiovascular risk factors were taken into account.
"我們的研究證實：整體而言，美國人的水果和蔬菜攝入量很低，"作者在Sci News中說道。研究團隊表明：即使考慮了年齡、性別、種族、吸菸和心血管風險等因素，較低的風險水平依然保持一致。"Older white women were most likely to eat three or more servings of fruits and vegetables daily, while younger black men were the least likely to report daily intake of three or more servings of fruits and vegetables," the authors say in Sci News.
"年紀大的白人女性最有可能每天吃三份或三份以上的水果和蔬菜，而年輕黑人最不可能每天吃三份或三份以上的水果和蔬菜，" 作者在Sci News中說道。According to the American Heart Association, legs or hips that suffer from cramps, pain, or achiness are common PAD symptoms. Many often don't realise they have the disease and it goes untreated, which can lead to complications like gangrene, and in extreme cases, amputation. The disease comes with an elevated risk of coronary artery disease, heart attacks or strokes.
美國心臟協會表示：腿部和臀部受痙攣、疼痛折磨是常見的外周動脈疾病症狀。通常，許多人都意識不到他們患有該疾病，因此沒有及時治療，這就可能導致壞疽等併發症，極端情況下會導致截肢。該疾病還會提高患冠狀動脈疾病、心臟病和中風的風險。
