美丽的代价

Fear of Fat Keeps Women Hooked on Smoking

A national obsession with the body beautiful may be damaging Brazilian women's health. In a country renowned for its sexy supermodels and revealing beachwear, upto 90 percent of Brazilian women who smoke may be afraid of giving up the habit in case they put on weight, according to a medical study. The study, by the Sao Paulo Heart Hospital, showed many women choose to smoke to suppress their appetite. "What makes a person eat too much is anxiety and if she begins to smoke, the attention is diverted to the cigarette and away from food," said Silvia Cury Ismael, coordinator of the study. Brazilian women show more resistance to quit smoking than men. The National Cancer Institute found that the number of male smokers dropped by 14.7 percent in Rio de Janeiro between 1989 and 2000, while women smokers declined just 3.5 percent. Tais Thormann, a 23-year-old model from the same region as the world-famous beauty Gisele Bundchen, backed up the study's findings. "Iknow smoking is bad, but I don't want to stop because it makes me lose weight," said Thormann. "When I am hungry, I go for a cigarette and a little coffee."

巴西国人对外表美丽的执着追求可能正在损害该国妇女的健康。根据一项医学调查，在这个以性感名模和清凉沙滩装闻名的国度，多达90%的吸烟妇女因为担心体重增加而不敢戒烟。圣保罗心脏病医院进行的这项调查显示许多妇女选择吸烟来抑制食欲。调查协调员席尔瓦·丘里·伊斯梅尔说：“焦虑使人饮食过度，而如果一名妇女开始吸烟，她的注意力就会从食物转移到香烟上来。”看起来，巴西妇女比男的更不愿意戒烟。国家癌症研究会发现，里约热内卢地区吸烟男子的数目在1989至2000年间下降了14.7%，而女性烟民只减少了3.5%。23岁的模特塔伊斯·索尔曼与闻名世界的美女吉塞尔·邦琴来自同一地区，她对调查的结论表示同意。“我知道抽烟不好，可我也不想戒烟，因为它能帮我减轻体重，”索尔曼说。“我饿了就抽支烟再喝点咖啡。”

Remarks：身体是革命的本钱，以现时风气，在身体前面加上“美丽”二字可能更有说服力，难怪文中那位模特要选择“餐风饮露”的生活了。