This isn’t going to be an easy climb (5/5) 這趟路並不輕鬆（五）
A: Congratulations! We’re at the peak. From here, the only way is down! B: That outcrop is an interesting shape. It looks like a whale to me. The lichen halfway down the side could be the eye. A: Actually, it’s already been given a name. It’s known locally as “Dragon Boat Rock.” B: Look, there’s somebody sitting under the outcrop. I can see their toes poking out of the whale’s mouth. A: It’s not a whale. It’s a dragon boat. A: 恭喜！我們登頂了。從這裡開始，就都是下坡了！ B: 這邊露出來的石塊形狀很有趣，看起來像鯨魚。中間的青苔就像牠的眼睛。 A: 其實它已經有名字了。當地人叫它「龍船岩」。 B: 你看，有人坐在岩石底下，我可以看到他們的腳趾從鯨魚的嘴巴裡伸出來。 A: 那才不是鯨魚，是龍船！ （Paul Cooper, Taipei Times／台北時報林俐凱譯） English 英文: Chinese 中文:
A: How are your legs? Not too tired? This is the final stretch. We’re almost at the top. B: So do we need to walk up that path? I think I’ll be fine: it looks like a gentle ascent, and there are steps all the way. A: Appearances can be deceptive. The path gets quite steep further on, and the steps become broken and irregular. We’re not out of the woods yet. B: What does that signpost say? If we take the right fork we will get to a temple in 25 minutes. A: Nice try. We’re going straight on, to the peak. A: 你的腿還好嗎？不會太累嗎？這是最後一段路了，我們快到山頂了。 B: 所以我們要往上走那條路嗎？我應該是沒問題的，那看起來是緩緩的上坡路，而且一路上都有階梯。 A: 外表會騙人。再遠一點坡度就變蠻陡，而且台階會變得破碎不規則。我們還沒脫離險境。 B: 那個路標寫什麼？如果我們走右邊的岔路，二十五分鐘以後就會到一座寺廟。 A: 你想得美！我們要繼續往前走，走到山頂。 （Paul Cooper, Taipei TimeS／台北時報林俐凱譯） English 英文: Chinese 中文:
Since its premiere on Oct. 2, US comedy series Emily in Paris has caused a sensation across the world. The Web TV series, starring actress Lily Collins, tells the story of Emily, a young woman who moves from Chicago to Paris for a job, as she struggles both at work and in love while experiencing culture shock. The show has topped streaming giant Netflix’s global chart and is the most-watched show in Taiwan. But the American perspective of the lead character has offended some French critics, who say that the “City of Lights” is not just about berets, croissants and cafes, and that Paris is almost “unrecognizable” in the show. Interestingly, the rom-com series was created by Darren Star, the executive producer of HBO’s Sex and the City, and both tell the story of a young woman trying to survive in a big city unfamiliar to her. For many viewers, the new show is like an “ode” to the old one and is bringing back their good old memories. (Eddy Chang, Taipei Times) 美國喜劇影集《艾蜜莉在巴黎》十月二日開播後，在全球掀起追劇熱潮。該網劇由女星莉莉柯林斯主演，劇情敘述一名年輕女子為了工作機會，而從芝加哥搬到巴黎。不但工作愛情兩頭燒，同時還飽受「文化衝擊」。 該劇近日稱霸串流影音龍頭網飛的全球排行榜第一名，在台灣也是收視冠軍。不過主角的美式觀點卻也惹惱某些法國影評，他們說譽稱為「璀璨之城」的巴黎不是只有貝雷帽、可頌和咖啡館，還說劇中的巴黎都快讓人認不出來了。 有趣的是，這部浪漫喜劇是由達倫史達所創作，而他正是《慾望城市》的執行製作。兩部影集都是關於年輕女性試圖在陌生的大城市生存的故事，因此許多觀眾覺得新作在向舊作致敬，並讓他們想起之前美好的回憶。 （台北時報張聖恩)
A: We can rest here. This is a good place to catch our breath, drink some water and enjoy the waterfall. B: It’s not the highest waterfall I’ve ever seen, but I like the way the water is cascading down those fallen boulders. A: Can you see that rock halfway up the waterfall? Is that two people sitting on it? B: I think you’re right. It’s a great vantage point to see the top of the waterfall. I wonder how they got up there. A: 我們可以在這裡休息一下。這地方很適合喘口氣、喝點水，還有欣賞瀑布。 B: 雖然不是我見過最高的瀑布，但是我喜歡瀑布落在這些倒下的大石塊的樣子。 A: 你看到瀑布往上中間的石頭嗎？那是兩個人坐在上面嗎？ B: 說的對，那是看瀑布頂端的絕佳位置。不知道他們是怎麼爬上去的？ （Paul Cooper, Taipei Times／台北時報林俐凱譯） English 英文: Chinese 中文:
A: That was nice of that guy to help you up the slope, extending his hand and pulling you up. B: It was. I’m glad someone put that knotted rope there, but I would still have found it challenging pulling myself up that rock. A: I know. It’s a steep slope, the ground is slippery underfoot and there are hardly any footholds to help you. B: Perhaps we shouldn’t have come up this way so soon after the rains. It’s quite dangerous. A: 那個人真好，你爬上坡的時候還助你一臂之力 ，拉你一把。 B: 沒錯。幸好有人把打結的繩子綁在上面，可是我還是覺得爬上那塊岩石很難。 A: 我知道你的意思。這坡很陡，地又滑，腳下幾乎沒有著力點。 B: 我們或許不應該在下過雨之後這麼快就爬上來這裡。這還蠻危險的。 （Paul Cooper, Taipei Times／台北時報林俐凱譯） English 英文: Chinese 中文:
Under the impact of the COVID-19 epidemic, this year everyone has been washing their hands frequently and wearing masks. One result of this is that there have only been 33 cases of enterovirus in Tainan this year, which is far fewer than last year. On Monday last week, Tainan Mayor Huang Wei-che visited a school to promote the correct ideas about preventing viral outbreaks. Huang urged everyone not to get complacent, saying that people should keep washing their hands every day to make the enterovirus go away. Tainan City Government held an enterovirus pledge activity under the banner of “Wash, rub, rinse, cup, wipe, then enterovirus will be nothing to fear” at Taiwan Municipal North District Kaiyuan Elementary School. Mayor Huang, Ministry of Health and Welfare Centers for Disease Control Southern Region Control Center Director Lee Tsuey-feng, Tainan City Public Health Bureau Commissioner Hsu I-lin, Bureau of Education Commissioner Cheng Hsin-hui, North District Administrator Lee Hwang-shing and local borough wardens got together and performed hand-washing actions to encourage everyone to pay attention to hand hygiene. Huang said that, thanks to everyone washing their hands frequently and wearing masks, there have been remarkably few enterovirus cases in Tainan this year. Whereas there were more than 1,600 cases last year, there have only been 33 cases so far this year, which is a 98 percent fall in the number of cases. Enterovirus can have a great impact on children’s health. Enterovirus 71, especially, can cause severe symptoms and can be deadly. Tainan will therefore maintain policies such as encouraging people to wear masks and wash their hands frequently, so as to safeguard every child’s health and give their parents peace of mind. The Public Health Bureau says that COVID-19 has had the effect of raising the public’s awareness of disease prevention. Enterovirus prevalence has reached
Most years, Taiwan is hit by typhoons during the summer and fall, but we have yet to see a typhoon this year. This unusual situation has put pressure on water supply levels in reservoirs around Taiwan. Due to global warming, the typhoons generated in the Pacific Ocean this year have all moved northward, bypassing Taiwan. Although successive fronts and afternoon showers have brought rainfall, it was only fragmented, covering limited areas and did little to replenish reservoirs. As a result, the reservoir storage this year is lower than in previous years. According to the Water Resource Agency, as of 2pm yesterday, the Shihmen Reservoir’s water storage was 44 percent of capacity, the Feicuei Reservoir’s was 62.3 percent and the Zengwen Reservoir’s was 31.3 percent. Two of the three major water reservoirs have less than 50 percent of their water storage capacity. In order to prepare for demand for water next year, the government has decided to implement three measures to control water usage. Firstly, starting from last Wednesday, night water pressure in the Taoyuan, Hsinchu and Miaoli areas was to be lowered from 11pm through to 5am the following day. Secondly, the irrigation of some areas of Taoyuan, Hsinchu and Miaoli was to be suspended, and farmers affected by the measures will receive government compensation. Thirdly, the Ministry of Economic Affairs is setting up a central drought response center to better respond to the crisis and to distribute water resources according to needs. Taiwanese are advised to take water-saving measures. (Translated by Lin Lee-kai, Taipei Times) 台灣每年夏、秋兩季颱風頻繁，但詭異的是，今年截至目前為止，竟無任何一個颱風登陸台灣，造成水庫缺水問題。 這是因為全球暖化之影響，今年大平洋生成的颱風往北移，導致沒有任何一個颱風進來台灣，雖然陸續有鋒面及午後陣雨帶來雨量，但下雨範圍多為局部地區，導致水庫蓄水量較往年低。 水利署資料顯示，截至昨日下午二時為止，石門水庫蓄水量為百分之四十四，翡翠水庫蓄水量百分之六十二點三，曾文水庫蓄水率百分之三十一點三，三大水庫中有兩座儲水量低於五成。 為審慎因應明年用水需求，政府實施三項因應措施。第一，桃竹苗中自上週三起，每天晚上十一點至隔日清晨五點實施減壓供水；第二，桃竹苗部分地區的農田，將停止供灌，政府也會給予補償，維持農民生活；第三，經濟部將成立抗旱中央應變中心，拉高應變層級，做好調度節水，更請全民配合省水。 (自由時報)
A: You see that Chinese character carved into the rock by the side of the path? That reads “ren”: it means “endure,” and I want you to remember that when we climb this hill. B: What are you saying? I don’t mind a leisurely hike in the hills. In fact, I’m quite looking forward to it. A: That’s my point. This isn’t going to be an easy climb. It’s going to be a bit of a slog. I don’t want you whining about how difficult it is every step of the way. B: Don’t worry. I’ll be good. Forewarned is forearmed. A: 你看到路邊那塊石頭上刻的字嗎？「忍」，就是忍耐。我們爬上山的時候，你得要記住這個字。 B: 你在說什麼啊？我不介意爬爬山休閒一下啊。其實我還蠻期待的耶。 A: 我就是在說這個。這趟路並不輕鬆，會有點寸步難行。我不要你每走一步就抱怨說這有多難。 B: 別擔心，我沒問題的。你先警告我，我就有心理準備了。 （Paul Cooper, Taipei Times／台北時報林俐凱譯） English 英文: Chinese 中文:
In the remote Shibi Village in Changhua County’s Puyan Township, one quarter of the population is aged above 65 years old. With young villagers having moved out of the village, it has been left without a single hairdresser. This has meant that, to get their hair cut, villagers have to make a troublesome 5km trip to a downtown area. To solve the problem, Puyan Township Mayor Hsu Wen-ping partnered with volunteer hairstylists from And Hair Salon and on Monday held a free hair cut service at the village’s town hall. Nearly 100 of the village’s elderly residents took up the offer to get their hair cut, with even the village’s oldest resident — 102-year-old centenarian Shih Ho-cheng — lining up in his wheelchair to get his locks trimmed. Shibi Village is located in the most south-westerly corner of Puyan Township and its residents are mostly engaged in the agriculture. Hsu says that due to the younger generation having left the village for work, the village’s hairdressers and barbershops one after another closed up shop, leaving the village without a single hairdresser for over a decade. On learning that And Hair Salon provides a free hair cutting service staffed by volunteers, Hsu paid an official visit to the hair salon, which immediately agreed to help out and dispatched eight of its stylists to the village. Eighty-three-year-old female village resident Huang Tzu has been cutting her hair by herself for many years, which she said leaves her looking like a scarecrow. After getting her hair cut by a professional hairdresser, Huang said she feels revitalized and a full 10 years younger: that’s one satisfied customer. (Liberty Times, translated by Edward Jones) 彰化縣埔鹽鄉石埤村位處偏遠，全村有四分之一人口都是六十五歲以上，因年輕人口流失，當地連一間理髮廳都沒有，村民剪髮必須跑到五公里外的鬧區，相當不便。為此埔鹽鄉長許文萍結合雅頓時尚造型集團，於週一前往石埤社區活動中心舉辦義剪活動，吸引近百名長者來理髮，連石埤村最高齡的百歲人瑞，一百零二歲的施合成，也被家人推著輪椅來排隊剪髮。 許文萍表示，石埤村位在埔鹽鄉最西南角，村民多以農務為主，但年輕人多出外打拼，以致當地理髮廳相繼關門，已有十多年都沒有新的理髮廳營業。許文萍得知雅頓集團有在幫偏鄉義剪，因此前往拜會，立即獲得認同，還派出八名設計師義剪。 八十三歲的黃足女士說，多年來她都自剪，頭髮不免雜亂無章，這次有設計師剪，好像年輕十幾歲，也變得有精神許多，相當滿意。 (自由時報記者陳冠備)
A: There are quite a few buskers in this park. That guy on the trumpet is quite good. B: Yeah, he looks like a cool guy with that cap on, accompanying the jazz playing over his amplifier. A: He’s got quite a lot of people around him, listening. B: They’re not listening. They’re just looking at that kid. He looks absolutely transfixed by the music. And that man is just texting on his phone. A: How do you know that man isn’t texting his friends to get them to rush over and check the busker out? A: 這公園裡有好幾個街頭藝人，這個吹小號的人表演得蠻不錯。 B: 對呀，他戴上那個帽子，再搭配擴音器放出來的爵士樂就很酷。 A: 有蠻多人圍著他聽音樂。 B: 那些人才不是在聽音樂。他們只是在看那個小孩，這音樂好像讓那個小孩目瞪口呆。而且那個人只是在用手機打簡訊。 A: 你怎麼知道那個人不是在傳簡訊給朋友，叫他們趕快來看這街頭藝人表演？ （Paul Cooper, Taipei Times／台北時報林俐凱譯） English 英文: Chinese 中文:
A: Hey! Look over at that bench. There’s an elderly lady in a wheelchair and her carer feeding the animals, and the animals are lining up waiting for the food! B: Are you trying to pull my leg? Animals don’t wait in line to be fed, they just scramble for any morsels that are thrown to them. A: Honest. No word of a lie. There’s a crane, a squirrel and a pigeon, patiently lining up in front of the old woman. Seriously. Would I lie to you? B: Good heavens, you’re right. I’ve never seen the like in all my years. The wildlife in this park seems to be very tame. A: 嘿！你看那邊的長椅，有個老太太坐在輪椅上，跟她的看護一起餵動物吃東西，那些動物還排隊等著吃呢！ B: 你是在唬我嗎？動物才不會排隊等著被餵呢，無論什麼東西丟一點點過去，牠們都會搶成一團。 A: 我是說真的，一點都沒騙你。那邊有一隻鶴、一隻松鼠和一隻鴿子，在老太太面前耐心排隊。真的。我幹嘛要騙你啊？ B: 我的老天，你說的對，我從來沒看過像這樣的情況。這公園裡的野生動物好像很溫馴。 （Paul Cooper, Taipei Times／台北時報林俐凱譯） English 英文: Chinese 中文:
Oscar-winning film directors James Cameron, Martin Scorsese and Ang Lee joined forces with movie theater owners on Sept. 30 in an appeal for financial aid. According to Reuters, in a letter co-signed by over 70 directors and producers to the US Senate and House of Representatives, they said that the COVID-19 pandemic has devastated the US film industry. The letter said that 69 percent of small- and medium-sized movie theaters will be forced to file for bankruptcy or close permanently, and without funds, “Theaters may not survive the impact of the pandemic.” As many as 93 percent of theaters saw their revenues plummet 75 percent or more in the second quarter, compared with the same period of time last year, and about 100,000 people working in the film industry could lose their jobs. Earlier last week, Cineworld Group, the second-largest movie theater chain in the US, announced plans to close its 536 Regal Cinemas in the US and 127 Cineworld and Picturehouse venues in the UK. The closures are likely to affect around 45,000 employees. (Eddy Chang, Taipei Times) 奧斯卡名導詹姆斯卡麥隆、馬丁史柯西斯、李安等人，於九月三十日加入電影院業主提出財務紓困的請願。根據路透報導，這封陳情信由七十多位導演和製片所共同簽署，他們上書美國參、眾兩院，表示武漢肺炎)新冠病毒，COVID-19)已重創電影業。 這封陳情信表示，百分之六十九的中小型電影院將被迫申請破產，甚至永久關閉，若沒有政府財務支援，「電影院將無法在疫情衝擊下生存！」高達百分之九十三的電影院跟去年同期相比，在今年第二季虧損達到或超過百分之七十五，約十萬名電影從業人員有可能失業。 上週稍早，美國第二大連鎖影城世界電影集團已宣布，關閉旗下在美國的五百三十六家豪華戲院，及在英國的一百二十七家世界與影屋戲院，關閉計劃將可能影響四萬五千名員工。(台北時報張聖恩)
A: There’s a guy over there hitting a tree. And the tree appears to be bending under the weight of his blow. B: Are you having a laugh? He’s practicing a martial art, and the tree was originally that shape. A: But why would he be striking a tree? He appears to be using a lot of force. It must hurt. B: He’s probably conditioning his knuckles. It’s a technique where you build up the hardness of your knuckles by gradually increasing the amount of power you use. It helps you build the ability to strike hard objects without damaging your knuckles. A: 那邊有個人在打一棵樹。而且那棵樹看起來好像被他一拳打彎了。 B: 你在開玩笑嗎？他是在練武，而且那棵樹本來就是那個樣子。 A: 那他為甚麼要打一棵樹？他看起來好用力，一定很痛。 B: 他也可能是在訓練手指的關節。這種技巧是慢慢增加所用的力 量，來讓關節越來越硬。這是讓你能夠打硬的東西，而不傷害手指關節。 （Paul Cooper, Taipei Times／台北時報林俐凱譯） English 英文: Chinese 中文:
A: That’s a lovely scene: a father having a game of soccer with his two boys. B: I think those are portable goal posts. They must have brought them with them. A: My dad used to take us to the park to play soccer when we were kids, but it was really just an excuse for him to kick a ball around. My brothers and I weren’t all that interested. B: These kids are really into it, though. Look at the concentration on that one’s face. I think he’s going to score. There’s no way the father can save that ball. A: The other one looks bored, though, leaning against the post and just watching. B: No, I saw him running around a minute ago. I think he’s just taking time out to catch his breath. A: 這真是一幅美好的景象：爸爸帶他兩個兒子一起踢足球。 B: 我猜這是活動式的球門，應該是他們自己帶來的。 A: 小時候我爸會帶我們去公園踢足球，但是這不過是他的藉口，因為這樣他自己就可以把球踢來踢去。我和幾個兄弟並不是那麼有興趣。 B: 但是這兩個小孩真的很喜歡玩欸，看這小孩一臉很投入的樣子。我猜他要踢進球了，這爸爸絕對是擋不下來的。 A: 可是另外一個小孩看起來很無聊的樣子，靠著球門只是看他們玩。 B: 才不是，我一分鐘以前還看到他跑來跑去，我想他只是停下來喘口氣而已。 （Paul Cooper, Taipei Times／台北時報林俐凱譯） English 英文: Chinese 中文:
Oriental white oaks, which in Taiwan are only to be found in Hsinchu County, are facing a renewed challenge to their survival on their home ground. A team led by Professor Chao Wei-chun of National Chiayi University’s Department of Forestry and Natural Resources spent two days at the Kengzihkou shooting range to do a survey about how well the local wild oriental white oaks are surviving. They found that one more tree had died since three months ago, while the trunks of several others had died, leaving only sucker shoots alive. At least one eighth of the 80 surviving oaks showed signs of wilting in their crowns. There were fewer acorns than last year, exhibiting differing levels of ripeness, which is a sign of delayed ripening. These findings give cause for concern. Chao’s team says that the reasons for the aforementioned conditions are not clear. Taking the wilting, for example, although they suspect that it has to do with insufficiently cold winters, relatively high temperatures and inadequate rainfall in recent years, there is no way to confirm this, so they are deliberating about how to prevent the situation from worsening. They have been doing surveys on the growth of oriental white oaks in their natural environment since 2013. They go into the restricted area every season to record the number of trees in the local oak population and measure their diameter at chest height. They also collect acorns and give them to Liao Yue-ken, a professor in the department who then uses the acorns to raise seedlings, which he gives to Hsinchu County Government for restorative planting outside the restricted area. This year they have added the further task of assessing the oaks’ state of health. Unfortunately, they say, while they recorded 81 wild oaks in their June survey, now they have to
The 2020 Nobel Prize season began on Monday last week as committees in Sweden and Norway name laureates in six prizes. The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was jointly awarded to Harvey Alter of the US, Michael Houghton of the UK and Charles Rice of the US for their discovery of the hepatitis C virus. The Nobel committee said the three scientists had “made possible blood tests and new medicines that have saved millions of lives.” Briton Roger Penrose, Reinhard Genzel of Germany and Andrea Ghez of the US received the Nobel Prize in Physics for their discoveries that have improved our understanding of the universe, including work on black holes. Frenchwoman Emmanuelle Charpentier and American Jennifer Doudna received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for their work on the development of CRISPR-Cas9 genetic scissors, a method for genome editing. This is the first time any Nobel science prize has gone to an all-female team. Charpentier and Doudna were also winners of the 2016 Tang Prize in Biopharmaceutical Science. The Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to American poet Louise Gluck “for her unmistakable poetic voice that with austere beauty makes individual existence universal.” The Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to the UN World Food Program for its “key role in multilateral cooperation on making food security an instrument of peace.” Finally, the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Science will be announced today at 17:45 Taiwan time. (Lin Lee-kai, Taipei Times) 二○二○年諾貝爾獎於上週一起陸續揭曉，共有六個獎項，由瑞典與挪威的諾貝爾獎委員會頒發。 美國的哈維‧阿爾特、英國的麥可‧霍頓及美國的查爾斯‧萊斯，以其對C型肝炎病毒之發現而共同獲得諾貝爾生醫獎。諾貝爾委員會表示，三位科學家「以血液檢測與新藥拯救了數百萬人的生命」。 諾貝爾物理學獎得主為英國的羅傑‧彭羅斯、德國的萊因哈德‧根策爾與美國的安德里婭‧吉茲，因其發現增進了對宇宙的了解，包括對黑洞的研究。 法國的艾曼紐‧夏彭提耶與美國的珍妮佛‧道娜，以其對基因組編輯方法CRISPR-Cas9基因剪刀之開發，而獲得諾貝爾化學獎。這是諾貝爾科學獎項首次頒給皆為女性的組合。夏彭提耶及道娜二○一六年亦曾獲得唐獎生技醫藥獎。 諾貝爾文學獎由美國詩人露易絲‧葛綠珂獲得，「因她無庸置疑的詩意之聲，以樸素的美感讓個人的存在成為普遍的共鳴」。 諾貝爾和平獎頒給了聯合國「世界糧食計畫署」，因該組織「在促進多邊合作上扮演了重要角色，防止世界利用飢餓作為戰爭武器，並促進糧食安全」。 最後揭曉的經濟學獎，將於今日台灣時間十七時四十五分公布得主。 （台北時報林俐凱）
A: It’s such beautiful weather today. It’s perfect for taking a stroll around the park, and it’s great to see so many people outside enjoying the sunshine. B: That woman’s got the right idea, sitting on a park bench, reading her book under a tree in the shade. A: She seems to be quite engrossed. She hasn’t looked up once. It must be a real page turner. B: Except for the fact that she doesn’t seem to be turning any pages. A: Yeah, I’m beginning to think she’s dozed off. B: Still, it’s a good idea, taking a nap on a park bench on a sunny day, shaded by the trees. A: 今天天氣真好！最適合到公園散步了，看到那麼多人到外面來享受陽光真好！ B: 那個小姐做得對，她坐在長椅上，在樹蔭底下看書。 A: 她看起來好專心，頭都不抬一下。那本書一定很好看，讓人一頁接一頁欲罷不能。 B: 但是她好像都沒有翻書。 A: 對呀，我開始覺得她是在打瞌睡。 B: 晴朗的日子在公園樹蔭下的長椅小睡，也還是個好點子。 （Paul Cooper, Taipei Times／台北時報林俐凱譯） English 英文: Chinese 中文:
The Mid-Autumn Festival extended vacation is a time when many people gorge themselves on food and drink. However, new medical research indicates that excessive consumption of sugar can increase the chances of the onset of depression. Returning to work at the end of the holiday coincides with the arrival of seasonal northeasterly winds, which bring overcast and rainy weather that can also affect people’s mood. Research published in the University of Kansas journal Medical Hypotheses indicates that excessive consumption of sugar can trigger a metabolic and inflammatory biological response, which has been linked to the onset of depression. According to the study, reduced exposure to sunlight during the winter months disrupts the body’s circadian rhythm and sleep patterns, which typically tips between 5 to 10 percent of the US population into a depressive state. The study found that a common characteristic of “winter-onset depression” is a craving for sugar. While sugar will provide an initial mood lift for people suffering from depression, researchers found that excessive consumption of sugary foods can cause mood swings, exacerbate inflammation and lead to weight gain. The study also found that inflammation is the most important physiological effect of sugar consumption, and it is linked to mental health and depressive disorders. Chang Gung Memorial Hospital psychiatrist Liu Chia-yih says that when serotonin levels in the brain become imbalanced, intake of sugar will provide a temporary boost of serotonin and alleviate the symptoms of depression in the short term, but over the long term excessive consumption of sugar will lead to inflammation of the brain and affect one’s mood. Liu says that winter-onset depression has been linked to reduced sunlight exposure and frequently occurs within high latitude areas of the globe where the hours of daylight are short and the nights are long. Although Taiwan undergoes distinct atmospheric changes at
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