熟悉四六级阅读理解题型的同学应该都了解，英语四六级考试阅读理解材料大多选自《时代》《卫报》《科学美国人》等外刊。要想阅读理解这部分拿到高分，必须在平常多阅读，掌握新词汇，锻炼阅读速度。

本篇阅读材料“女性比男性更容易心碎”选自《时代》（原文标题：Why Are Women More Vulnerable to Broken Hearts? 2011.11.21），如果大家觉得比较简单，就当作泛读材料了解了解，认识几个新单词或新表达方式也不错。如果大家觉得这些材料理解上有难度，不妨当做挑战自己的拔高训练，希望大家都有进步^^

Women are a lot more likely to suffer a broken heart than men, researchers say. The good news is that it probably won't kill you.

In the first national study of its kind, researchers at the University of Arkansas looked at rates of "broken heart syndrome" — when a sudden shock or prolonged stress causes heart attack-like symptoms or heart failure — and found that it overwhelmingly affects women.

syndrome n. 1. 并发症状，综合症，同时存在的事物 2. 典型意见，典型表现

overwhelmingly ad. 压倒性地；不可抵抗地；（感情）极其强烈地

Women are at least seven times more likely than men to suffer the syndrome, and older women are at greater risk than younger ones, according to data presented Wednesday at the American Heart Association conference in Orlando.

"It's the only cardiac condition where there's such a female preponderance," Dr. Abhiram Prasad, a Mayo Clinic cardiologist who was not associated with the study, told the AP. Heart attack and heart disease, of course, strike men more often and earlier in life than women.

cardiac a. 1. 心脏的；心脏病的 n. 强心剂；心脏病患者

preponderance n. 重量的优势；优势；优越

Broken heart syndrome can happen in response to shocking or suddenly emotional events — both positive ones like winning the lottery, or negative ones like a car accident or the unexpected death of a loved one. A flood of stress hormones and adrenaline causes part of the heart to enlarge temporarily and triggers symptoms that can look like heart attack: chest pain, shortness of breath, irregular heart rhythm. The difference is that the factors that would normally cause heart attack, such as a blocked artery, aren't present.

Most sufferers usually recover within a week or two, but in rare cases — about 1% — people die of the condition.

Doctors have long known about broken heart syndrome — first described by Japanese researchers two decades ago — and that it seemed to occur mostly in women. So, Dr. Abhishek Deshmukh, a cardiologist at the University of Arkansas who has treated women with broken heart syndrome, became curious about just how gender-specific the condition was.

gender-specific 和性别有多大关系

Using a federal database that included data from roughly 1,000 hospitals, Deshmukh found 6,229 cases of broken heart syndrome in 2007. Of those, only 671 — just under 11% — were in men. He found that, overall, women had about 7.5 times the risk of broken heart syndrome as men; in people under 55, women were at 9.5 times greater risk than men. Women over 55 were also three times more likely to suffer broken heart syndrome than younger women.

Researchers don't know what causes the gender disparity, but they have some ideas. Reported the AP:

One theory is that hormones play a role. Another is that men have more adrenaline receptors on cells in their hearts than women do, "so maybe men are able to handle stress better" and the chemical surge it releases, Deshmukh said.

surge n. 大浪；汹涌澎湃；巨涌 vi. 激增；汹涌 vt. 使颠簸

About 10% of sufferers will have a second episode at some point, but most return to full heart function without permanent damage or need for follow-up treatment. So, it looks like the way to mend a broken heart is what Mom always said: just give it time.

follow-up 后续

Question time:

1. What is called broken heart syndrome?

2. What's the difference between broken heart syndrome and heart attack ?

3. Why are women more vulnerable to broken hearts ?

【答案】

1. when a sudden shock or prolonged stress causes heart attack-like symptoms or heart failure, it is called broken heart syndrome.

2. The difference is that the factors that would normally cause heart attack, such as a blocked artery, aren't present.

3. One theory is that hormones play a role. Another is that men have more adrenaline receptors on cells in their hearts than women do.