2017考研英語閱讀時文泛讀：美國食品制度

考研英語來源：文都教育 2016-01-28　

今天給大家介紹的閱讀話題是關于美國美國的食品政策：Americans are drinking fewer sugary sodas，美國人越來越少地選擇飲用含糖碳酸飲料。具體內容如下：

Americans are drinking fewer sugary sodas—in 2012 production was 23% below what it had been a decade earlier. Even sales of diet drinks are losing their fizz, as consumers question the merits of artificial sweeteners. From one angle, it would seem that health advocates such as Ms Nestle have won. Yet in America companies still produce 30 gallons of regular (not diet) fizzy drinks per person per year. In many countries, particularly developing ones, consumption is on the rise. However, for millions of people in many countries, they are not.

與往年相比，美國人對碳酸飲料的消費逐漸減少，在2012年其產量減少了23%。并且，隨著消費者對飲料中是否含有人工甜味劑提出了越來越多的質疑，膳食飲料也不再受人青睞。從某個角度來看，像奈斯特女士這樣的健康倡導者似乎贏得了勝利。然而，美國軟飲料公司每年生產的常規碳酸飲料(而非膳食飲料)人均多達30加侖。在許多國家，尤其是發展中國家，常規碳酸飲料的消費仍呈上漲趨勢。在許多不發達國家，很多普通百姓仍然在消費碳酸飲料。

Drinking a lot of sweet fizzy drinks is plainly unhealthy. Unlike a Big Mac, they have no nutritional value; nor do their calories satisfy hunger. Encouraging people to drink fewer fizzy drinks, however, is fiendishly difficult. Soda companies spend billions on marketing; it is a tribute to the admen that Coca-Cola is one of the world’s best-loved brands, despite selling what is essentially fattening sugar-water. Once people get used to consuming sugary drinks, they are loth to give them up. There is evidence suggesting that sugar is addictive—some laboratory animals prefer sugar to cocaine.

毫無疑問，過度消耗碳酸飲料對我們的身體健康絕對是有害的，并且料毫無營養價值，它產生的熱量也無法抵抗饑餓。但是鼓勵人們盡量少喝碳酸飲料卻出奇的難。碳酸飲料企業在營銷上花費巨資。盡管可口可樂售賣的實際上是令人增肥的糖水飲料，但可口可樂無疑是世界上最受消費者青睞的品牌之一。而這對于廣告人而言，是件可喜可賀的事情。人們一旦習慣了消費含糖飲料，便很難戒掉。有證據表明食糖是會上癮的——與可卡因相比，實驗室的動物們更喜歡食糖。

這篇文章給我們介紹了當今美國社會碳酸飲料的消費情況，和我們之前的認知大有不同，美國人對飲料的消耗是減少了，而這種消耗在發展中國家卻是一個上升趨勢。每年的閱讀真題選材都具有很強的實效性，所以考生也要擴大視野，掌握最新的時文消息。多做泛讀，一來可以鞏固閱讀的基礎，二來可以培養閱讀的興趣，并且增強語感。老師還會不斷給大家介紹最新的時文選材。