2017考研英語閱讀題源時文泛讀:美國食品制度

　　2016考研的硝煙已經(jīng)散去，2017的考研學(xué)子開始投入了正式的復(fù)習(xí)。如何打好2017考研英語的基礎(chǔ)?老師建議2017考生要多閱讀英文報刊雜志的文章，培養(yǎng)閱讀的語感。今天給大家介紹的閱讀話題是關(guān)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(nèi)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(fèi)逐漸減少，在2012年其產(chǎn)量減少了23%。并且，隨著消費(fèi)者對飲料中是否含有人工甜味劑提出了越來越多的質(zhì)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(dǎo)者似乎贏得了勝利。然而，美國軟飲料公司每年生產(chǎn)的常規(guī)碳酸飲料(而非膳食飲料)人均多達(dá)30加侖。在許多國家，尤其是發(fā)展中國家，常規(guī)碳酸飲料的消費(fèi)仍呈上漲趨勢。在許多不發(fā)達(dá)國家，很多普通百姓仍然在消費(fèi)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(yǎng)價值，它產(chǎn)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(yè)在營銷上花費(fèi)巨資。盡管可口可樂售賣的實(shí)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(fèi)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(xí)慣了消費(fèi)含糖飲料，便很難戒掉。有證據(jù)表明食糖是會上癮的——與可卡因相比，實(shí)驗(yàn)室的動物們更喜歡食糖。

　　這篇文章給我們介紹了當(dāng)今美國社會碳酸飲料的消費(fèi)情況，和我們之前的認(rèn)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(fā)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(qiáng)的實(shí)效性，所以考生也要擴(kuò)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(chǔ)，二來可以培養(yǎng)閱讀的興趣，并且增強(qiáng)語感。