Unlocking
Word Meanings
Read
the following words/expressions found in today’s article.
1.
peel
(n.) [peel] – the skin of a fruit (or vegetable)
Example:
Apple peels contain nutrients that are
good for the health.
2.
wasting
(adj.) [wey-sting] – losing the strength or energy of a certain part of the body
(usually due to disease)
Example:
Bedridden patients suffer from muscle wasting
because of lack of movement.
3.
starved
(adj.) [stahrvd] – suffering from lack of food (extremely hungry)
Example:
Starved children cannot grow
well due to a lack of needed nutrients.
4.
prevent
(v.) [pri-vent] – to stop something (or someone) from happening
Example:
A healthy lifestyle prevents people
from getting sick.
5.
aging
(n.) [eyjing] – the process of getting old
Example:
Aging affects physical and mental
ability.
Article
Read
the text below.
A chemical
compound found in apple peels, called ursolic acid,
can prevent ‘muscle wasting’, according to
endocrinologists from University
of Iowa.
This finding
was the result of an experiment in which ursolic acid was given to two sets of
mice: one that was well-fed and one that was starved.
After feeding each mouse with the compound, the well-fed mice developed muscles
and had lower sugar and cholesterol levels, while the starved ones did not lose
muscles as expected.
In addition,
researchers studied how the muscles changed during starvation and discovered
that ursolic acid could prevent these changes.
Muscle loss,
also called atrophy, results from lack of physical activity due to aging or
illness.
As of today,
there are no known drugs to cure or prevent atrophy. Through this new research,
experts hope to develop a drug that will help aging or ill patients.
However, the
researchers admit that further studies must be done to determine whether the same
results are applicable to humans. They would also like to know if eating apples
alone would be enough to prevent muscle loss.
Viewpoint
Discussion
Enjoy
a discussion with your tutor.
Discussion A
·
What do you think will
happen if there are no medical researches being done?
·
What do you think
are the purposes of medical research?
Discussion B
·
How often do you
eat fruits?
·
What do you think
are the advantages and disadvantages of eating fruits?
