Daily, moderate drinking could almost halve the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease or other types of dementia, according to new research. 

    根據最新醫學研究發現，每天適量飲酒可能會使患阿爾茨海默氏(早老性癡呆)或其它類型癡呆癥的危險減少一半。
 
    The finding adds to a growing body of evidence for the health benefits of moderate drinking, which is already known to protect against heart disease and stroke

    越來越多的發現證明適量飲酒有益健康，如人們已經了解的適量飲酒可以預防心臟病和中風，這項新的發現又為此說增添了證據。
 
    The study, published this week in The Lancet medical journal, also found that it doesn't seem to matter what people drink - the effect is the same.

    發表在本周醫學雜志《柳葉刀》上的這項研究還發現，無論人們飲何種酒，其效果都是相同的。
 
    Experts say moderation - between one and three drinks a day - is the key.

    專家說，適量即每天飲1至3杯酒是關鍵。
 
    The adverse effect of excess alcohol is beyond question. Besides destroying the liver, several studies have shown that excessive drinking can be toxic to the brain. Alcoholics can end up with a shrunken brain, which is linked to dementia. There is even a medical condition called alcoholic dementia

    過量飲酒的不良作用是毫無疑問的。除了損傷肝臟，許多研究已證明，過量飲酒可使大腦中毒。飲酒過量者最終會導致大腦萎縮，造成癡呆。甚至醫學上就專門有"酒精中毒性癡呆"一說。
 
    Scientists at Erasmus University in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, conducted a six-year study of 5,395 people aged 55 and over who did not have signs of dementia.

    荷蘭鹿特丹Erasmus大學的科學家對5395位55歲以上的人進行了6年的追蹤研究，當時，他們沒有患癡呆病的癥狀。
 
    They were asked whether they ever drank alcohol. Those who said yes were quizzed on how often they drank and details on their consumption of specific drinks such as wine, beer, spirits and fortified wine such as sherry and port.

    研究人員首先問他們是否喝過酒，對飲酒者再進一步追問他們是否經常喝酒，多少時間喝一次酒，喝什么酒，諸如葡萄酒、啤酒、烈酒，還是加度葡萄酒如雪利酒和波爾圖酒。
 
    The men mostly drank beer and liquor, while women preferred wine and fortified wine.

    男人通常飲用啤酒和烈酒，而女士更喜愛飲果酒和加度葡萄酒。
 
    The researchers also checked whether participants' drinking habits had changed over the preceding five years or whether they had engaged in binge drinking - more than six drinks in one day.

     研究人員還檢查了受試者在先前五年中飲酒習慣是否有所改變或他們是否曾經狂飲作樂，即每日飲酒超過6杯。

    Everyone was categorized according to how much they drank. Four or more glasses of alcohol per day were considered heavy drinking.

    依據受試者飲酒量分類。每天飲酒4杯以上的人被定為過度飲酒。
 
    By the end of the study in 1999, 197 of the participants had developed Alzheimer's or another form of dementia. Those who fared best were people who drank between one and three drinks a day. They had a 42 percent lower risk of developing dementia than the nondrinkers.

    到1999年這項研究結束時，受試者中有197人已患上阿爾茨海默氏綜合癥或另一種類型的癡呆癥。從飲酒中獲益的受試者是那些每天飲1至3杯酒的人。與不飲酒者相比，他們患癡呆的危險要低42%。
 
    Those who weren't daily drinkers but had more than one drink per week had a 25 percent lower risk and those who drank less than a glass a week were 18 percent less likely than nondrinkers to develop dementia. Drinking heavily did not affect overall dementia.

    就癡呆癥的發病率而言，與不飲酒者相比，每周飲酒一杯以上而不是每天飲酒者,發病率要低25%，而每周飲酒不到一杯的受試者,發病率要低18%。過度飲酒對各種癡呆癥沒有預防作用。
 
    Heavy drinkers, who numbered 165 - mostly men - were 1 1/2times more likely to get vascular dementia and slightly more likely than nondrinkers of ending up with Alzheimer's.

    165位過度飲酒者中大多數為男性，他們患血管性癡呆病的可能性要高出1.5倍，而最終患阿爾茨海默氏病的可能性比不飲酒者稍高。
 
    Researchers suggested the blood-thinning and cholesterol-lowering properties of ethanol in alcohol may ward off dementia, which is often caused by a blood vessel problem.

    研究人員提出，酒中乙醇的血液稀釋作用和降低膽固醇特性可能有預防癡呆的功效，因為癡呆通常是由血管問題造成的。
 
    Another possibility, the study speculated, is that low levels of alcohol could stimulate the release acetylcholine, a brain chemical believed to facilitate learning and memory.

    該研究推測的另一種可能是，低含量的酒精能刺激人體釋放乙酰膽鹼，這是人腦中一種能促進學習和記憶的化學物質。