原文标题：World in a dishConfronting the dangers of ultra-processed foodA cocktail of additives and preservatives poses a risk to people’s health盘中世界警惕超加工食品的危害添加剂和防腐剂的混合物对人们的健康构成威胁

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WHICH IS HEALTHIER: a bag of crisps or a kalesalad? That is easy.

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一袋薯片和一份羽衣甘蓝沙拉哪个更健康？这很容易回答。

Now which is healthier: a pizza made from scratch or one made from the same basic ingredients, with the same number of calories, pulled out of a box in the freezer?

现在再问一下：一个是亲手做的披萨，另一个用相同食材做的、有相同热量的、从冷冻箱里拿出来的披萨，哪个更健康？

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Many people concerned with what they eat would instinctively say the former, perhaps citing a vague concern with “processed food”. Such food can often be delicious. (This columnist has a particular weakness for salty potato crisps.)

许多关心饮食的人本能地会说前者更健康，也许是出于对“加工食品”的隐约担忧。加工食物往往很美味。（本栏作家就偏爱咸薯片。）

And there is much to cheer about calories being cheap and abundant, when for most of human history they were neither.

而且加工食品含有又多又便宜的卡路里，相较人类历史大部分时间里的食品稀缺，这确实值得欢呼雀跃。

But as Chris van Tulleken’s new book, “Ultra-Processed People”, explains, that cheapness and abundance come at a cost.但正如克里斯·范·图勒肯的新书《超加工人群》所解释的那样，又多又便宜是要付出代价的。

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Mr van Tulleken, a doctor and television presenter, draws a distinction between “ultra-processed food” (UPF) and “processed food”.

医生兼电视节目主持人范·图勒肯对“超加工食品”(UPF) 和“加工食品”进行了区分。

Almost everything people consume is processed in some form: rice is harvested and hulled, animals are butchered.

人们吃的几乎所有食品都经过某种形式的加工：稻米收割后被去壳，动物被屠宰。

He uses a definition proposed by Carlos Monteiro, a food scientist, describing UPF as “formulations of ingredients, mostly of exclusive industrial use, made by a series of industrial processes, many requiring sophisticated equipment and technology”.

他使用了食品科学家卡洛斯·蒙泰罗提出的定义，“超加工食品是由一系列工业加工过程制成的食品配方，其中大多含工业用途成分，需要依靠复杂精致的设备和技术”。

A pizza made from scratch contains minimally processed food (wheat turned into flour, tomatoes into sauce, milk into cheese).

亲自做的披萨包含的食品加工程度极低（小麦变成面粉，西红柿变成番茄酱，牛奶变成奶酪）。

The one in the freezer, with its thiamine mononitrateand sodium phosphate, is UPF.冰箱里的披萨是超加工食品，里面含有硝酸硫胺和磷酸钠。

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The cocktail of additives and preservatives in UPF harm people in ways both known and unknown.

超加工食品中的添加剂和防腐剂混合物正以已知和未知的方式伤害人类健康。

It seems to affect the gut microbiome, the trillions of bacteria that contribute to health in a range of ways.

它似乎会影响肠道微生物菌群，这些数万亿种肠道细菌对人类健康有多种好处。

Calorie-rich but usually nutrient-poor, UPF contributes to obesity in part because its palatability and soft texture foster overconsumption, overriding satiety signals from the brain. 由于富含卡路里但通常缺乏营养，超加工食品会导致肥胖问题，一定程度上是因为它的美味口感和柔软质地会使人们贪食，从而压倒了大脑里的饱腹感信号。

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Because this frankenfood is cheap to produce and buy, UPF displaces healthier alternatives, particularly for poor people.

由于这种恶魔食品的生产和购买成本低廉，超加工食品替代了更健康的食品，对穷人来说尤其如此。

Extra weight was once a sign of wealth, but among British and American women today, obesity rates are higher at lower-income levels.

超重曾经是财富的标志，但在当今的英国和美国女性中，低收入群体的肥胖率更高。

(Curiously, rates do not vary for men, even though a greater share of American men than women are obese.)（有趣的是，尽管美国男性的肥胖比例高于女性，但未出现女性那种“收入与体重呈反比”的现象。）

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The reasons why UPF can be harmful are not always clear, even to scientists.

超加工食品为何有害的原因并不总是清晰明了，甚至连科学家也不清楚。

Additives that may be safe in isolation or small quantities may be harmful in combination with other chemicals or when consumed regularly.

一些添加剂在单独使用或少量使用时可能无害，但与其他化学物质混合或经常摄入时可能会有害。

If we are what we eat, considering the impact of UPF is essential, but too often Mr van Tulleken’s case for clean food is accompanied by anti-capitalist preening: for instance, he nonsensically calls corporate-tax minimisation “part of ultra-processing”. 如果人们吃什么像什么，那么考虑到超加工食品的影响就非常重要，但范图勒肯对清洁食品的主张常常伴随着反资本主义的戏谑：例如，他戏称企业避税为“超加工的一部分” 。

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Environment matters, too. People who live in what the author calls “food swamps”, where “UPF is everywhere but real food is harder to reach”, could spend large amounts of time and money seeking out fresh food, but that is not how most people live.

环境也很重要。生活在作者所说的“食物沼泽”中的人们，那里的“超加工食品无处不在，但真正的健康食物却很难获得”，人们可能要花费大量的时间和金钱去寻找新鲜食物，但这并不是大多数人的生活方式。

There is nothing wrong with the odd fast-food trip, but anyone who can afford to eat less UPF probably should. 偶尔吃快餐没有什么问题，但任何有经济条件的人都应该尽量减少超加工食品的摄入。

（恭喜读完，本篇英语词汇量501左右）原文出自：2023年7月29日《The Economist》Culture版块

精读笔记来源于：自由英语之路

本文翻译整理: Irene本文编辑校对: Irene仅供个人英语学习交流使用。

【补充资料】（来自于网络）《超加工人群》Ultra-Processed People是一本关于现代工业化食品对人类健康的影响的书籍。作者探讨了工业化食品的制造过程，揭示了其中使用的添加剂和防腐剂的危害。书中还讨论了工业化食品与肥胖、糖尿病、心血管疾病等健康问题之间的关联。作者呼吁读者重新审视自己的饮食习惯，并提供了从零开始亲手制作健康食品的建议。"企业税收最小化"corporate-tax minimisation是指通过合法利用漏洞、减税措施和有利的税收法规来减少企业需要支付的税款的做法。它涉及战略性的财务规划和结构设计，以优化公司的税收负担。这可以包括将利润转移至低税收管辖区、利用税收激励和抵免措施，以及采用各种会计技术来最小化应税收入。其目的是合法减少企业的总体税负，从而最大化利润和股东价值。然而，企业税收最小化的程度和道德标准可能存在差异，有些做法可能受到审查，涉嫌避税或逃税。食物沼泽Food Swamps是指在某些社区或地区，人们容易获得不健康的食物，而很难获得健康的食物。这些地区通常有大量的便利店、快餐店和饮料自动售货机，但缺乏健康食品零售店或农贸市场。食物沼泽对人们的健康产生负面影响。高盐、高糖、高脂肪的便利食品容易导致肥胖、糖尿病和心血管疾病等健康问题。食物沼泽还可能导致社区居民的饮食习惯恶化，缺乏必要的营养，降低整个社区的整体健康水平。【重点句子】（3个）And there is much to cheer about calories being cheap and abundant, when for most of human history they were neither.而且加工食品含有又多又便宜的卡路里，相较人类历史大部分时间里的食品稀缺，这确实值得欢呼雀跃。Calorie-rich but usually nutrient-poor, UPF contributes to obesity in part because its palatability and soft texture foster overconsumption, overriding satiety signals from the brain. 由于富含卡路里但通常缺乏营养，超加工食品会导致肥胖问题，一定程度上是因为它的美味口感和柔软质地会使人们贪食，从而压倒了大脑里的饱腹感信号。Additives that may be safe in isolation or small quantities may be harmful in combination with other chemicals or when consumed regularly.一些添加剂在单独使用或少量使用时可能无害，但与其他化学物质混合或经常摄入时可能会有害。