喝啤酒能讓人更加聰明嗎?大綱

Hop compound boosts brain function - but you'd need to drink 3,500 PINTS a day

啤酒能讓你更聰明嗎?啤酒花中所含的化學物質能刺激大腦功能-前提是每天喝3500品脫。

Beer, or at least one of its ingredients, could boost brain function, a new study has found.

啤酒或者至少啤酒的一個成分能提高大腦功能。

But a leisurely pint is unlikely to have any intellectual benefit, because a person would need to drink the equivalent of 3,520 pints (2,000 litres) a day to stand any chance of boosting their cognitive abilities.

但是，如果僅僅是全爲消遣而喝下的一品託啤酒是不會起到任何智力上的增強作用的。一個人一天起碼要喝下相當於3250品脫（2000升）的啤酒纔有可能使大腦的認知能力得到增強。

Researchers demonstrated that xanthohumol – a type of flavonoid found in hops and beer - improved cognitive function in young mice.

研究者證明xanthohumol——一種在啤酒花和啤酒中發現的類黃酮——能夠改善年輕的小老鼠認知功能。

Flavonoids are compounds found in plants that often give them their colour and scientists have been studying them in blueberries, dark chocolate and red wine to uncover any potential benefits that could help fight cancer and heart disease, for example.

類黃酮是一種常見於植物自身着色用的化合物，科學家正在研究藍莓，黑巧克力和紅酒中所含的類黃酮以揭祕類黃酮對於治療癌症，心血管類疾病等的潛在效益。

Scientists hope that xanthohumol could be used to treat metabolic syndrome, a condition associated with obesity and high blood pressure, as well as age-related deficits in memory. The rare micronutrient is found in the hops, commonly used to make beer.

科學家們希望黃腐酚可以用來治療代謝綜合徵、肥胖和高血壓相關症狀以及與記憶力因老化衰退。在常用的啤酒和啤酒花中發現含微量的營養物質。

Experts at Oregon State University (OSU) believe they have taken a step to understanding the degradation of memory that happens with age in many mammals, including humans, because no effect was seen in older mice used in the study.

俄勒岡州立大學的教授認爲，他們已經開始研究爲什麼常見於包括人類在內的大多數哺乳動物的衰老造成的記憶力減退的狀況卻在試驗用的年老老鼠身上沒有發生。

They studied xanthohumol in high dosages - beyond what would be naturally ingested as part of a normal diet - and found that it appears to enhance young animals’ ability to adapt to changes in their environment.

他們研究了黃腐酚高劑量-超出了正常飲食會自然攝入的一部分,並發現它似乎增強年輕動物適應環境變化的能力。

The cognitive flexibility of the mice was tested with a specially designed maze and younger mice showed signs of intellectual improvement.

在爲小鼠的認知靈活性測試特別設計的迷宮中,年輕的老鼠表現出認知進步的跡象。

The levels of xanthohumol used in the study were only possible using supplements, so that if a human was to stand any chance of seeing positive cognitive effects, they would have to drink ‘2,000 litres of beer a day to reach the xanthohumol levels we used in this research,’ the experts said.

因用於該項研究的黃腐酚量很大，只可能使用濃量高的製劑才能滿足研究的所需量，所以，如果要對人的認知起到積極效果，一天就得喝2000升啤酒才能達到我們用於這項研究的黃腐酚量。

‘Xanthohumol can speed the metabolism, reduce fatty acids in the liver and, at least with young mice, appeared to improve their cognitive flexibility, or higher level thinking,’ Daniel Zamzow, a former OSU doctoral student said.

“黃腐酚可以加快新陳代謝，減少肝部脂肪酸。並且在試驗中，年輕的老鼠展現出了認知能力的提高以及更高層次的思維能力。”丹尼爾 扎姆卓爾，前俄勒岡州立大學博士研究生說。

‘Unfortunately it did not reduce palmitoylation [a normal biological process] in older mice, or improve their learning or cognitive performance, at least in the amounts of the compound we gave them,’ Dr Zamzow, who is now a lecturer at the University of Wisconsin/Rock County, added.

“不幸的是它並沒有降低老年老鼠的棕櫚酰化(一個正常的生物過程),或者改善他們的學習認知能力,至少在我們給他們的化合物的數量上,”現在是威斯康辛大學的講師的扎姆卓爾博士補充道。

Kathy Magnusson, a professor at OSU, said: ‘This flavonoid [xanthohumol] and others may have a function in the optimal ability to form memories.’

所以馬格努鬆凱西,俄勒岡州立大學教授說:“這類黃酮和其他物質可能在形成最佳形式的記憶能力方面有作用。”

‘Part of what this study seems to be suggesting is that it’s important to begin early in life to gain the full benefits of healthy nutrition.’

“這項研究也表明了在生命初期，即年輕時期，攝入足夠健康營養物質的重要性及益處。”