VOA慢速英语听力：药企称减肥药取得积极效果 Drugmaker Reports Positive Results from Weight-loss Pill
Drugmaker Novo Nordisk says tests show good weight loss results from a daily pill version of its diabetes treatments.
药企诺和诺德斯克表示，经测试显示其糖尿病治疗药物的每日口服药片版本在减肥方面取得了良好的效果。
The company sells the drug semaglutide under the names Wegovy and Ozempic. It is currently available only as a weekly injection.
该公司以Wegovy和Ozempic的名称销售西格列汀这种药物。目前该药物仅以每周注射的形式提供。
But some people are afraid of needles. So, Novo Nordisk has been testing how the drug works when taken by mouth.
但有些人害怕注射。因此，诺和诺德斯克一直在测试这种药物口服时的效果。
Wegovy and Ozempic have gotten a lot of attention in the last year for helping people lose weight. The government has approved the drugs to treat people with the disease diabetes. But weight loss doctors also give the medication to overweight people who do not have diabetes.
在过去的一年里，Wegovy和Ozempic因帮助人们减肥而受到了广泛关注。政府已批准这些药物用于治疗患有糖尿病的人。但减肥医生也会给没有糖尿病的超重人士开出这些药物。
Novo Nordisk said Sunday that two 16-month studies showed good results when people took a daily pill instead of a weekly shot.
诺和诺德斯克周日表示，两项为期16个月的研究显示，人们每天服用药片而不是每周注射时取得了良好的结果。
One study followed 1,600 overweight adults who were already being treated for diabetes. They took a pill version of the drug each day. They lost between seven and nine kilograms.
其中一项研究追踪了1600名已经接受糖尿病治疗的超重成年人。他们每天服用一种药片。他们减掉了七到九公斤的体重。
The other study looked at 660 overweight people who had a weight-related disease other than diabetes. Those people took a daily pill containing 50 milligrams of the medication. They lost about 16 kilograms.
另一项研究调查了660名超重人士，他们患有与体重相关的疾病，而非糖尿病。这些人每天服用含有50毫克药物的药片。他们减掉了约16公斤的体重。
The writers of the study said the results of the second group were similar to those who received the Wegovy injection once per week.
这项研究的作者表示，第二组的结果与每周注射Wegovy的人类似。
Novo Nordisk said it expects to ask the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to approve the pills for weight loss later this year.
诺和诺德斯克表示，预计将在今年晚些时候向美国食品药品监督管理局申请批准这种减肥药片。
Some of the people in the study reported side effects including intestinal problems, sick stomach, and diarrhea.
研究中的一些人报告了副作用，包括肠道问题、恶心和腹泻。
Daniel Bessen is a weight loss doctor in Denver. He was not involved with the study, but he treats patients who use weight loss drugs. He said, if you ask people, “’Would you rather take a pill or an injection?’ People overwhelmingly prefer a pill.”
丹尼尔·贝森是丹佛市的一位减肥医生。他没有参与该研究，但他治疗过使用减肥药物的患者。他说，如果你问人们：“你更愿意服用药片还是注射？”大多数人会选择药片。
He added, however, that people might not feel the same way if the pills are more costly than the injections. He said cost and availability are the most important issues for people when deciding which drugs to take.
然而，他补充说，如果药片的价格比注射剂更昂贵，人们可能不会有同样的感受。他说，成本和可获得性是人们在决定服用哪种药物时最重要的问题。
Katherine Saunders is a weight loss doctor at Weill Cornell Health in New York City. She said people will be “thrilled” with the ability to take a pill.
凯瑟琳·桑德斯是纽约威尔康奈尔健康中心的减肥医生。她表示，人们将对能够服用药片感到“高兴”。
Novo Nordisk already has a pill form of semaglutide that is used for diabetes. It is called Rybelsus. But it contains less semaglutide than Wegovy.
诺和诺德斯克已经有一种用于糖尿病的西格列汀药片，名为Rybelsus。但它所含的西格列汀比Wegovy少。
Dr. Fatima Cody Stanford is an expert in treating overweight people at Massachusetts General Hospital. She does not think the availability of a daily pill will change the habits of many people who already use the injections. She said, "A lot of people like the ease of taking a medication once a week."
Dr. Fatima Cody Stanford是马萨诸塞州综合医院治疗超重患者的专家。她认为每日口服药物的可获得性不会改变很多已经使用注射剂的人的习惯。她说：“很多人喜欢每周只需一次服药的方便性。”
She also said some people might prefer the shots to a pill that needs to be taken 30 minutes before eating or drinking each morning.
她还表示，有些人可能更喜欢注射剂，而不是每天早晨饭前30分钟服用药片。
Paul Morer is 56 years old. He said he has lost about 40 kilograms using Wegovy and does not mind the injection. "I do it on Saturday, it's part of my routine," he said. "I don't even feel the needle," Morer added.
保罗·莫勒今年56岁。他说自己使用Wegovy减掉了约40公斤的体重，对注射并不介意。“我在星期六注射，这已经成为我的例行事项，”他说。“我甚至感觉不到针头，”莫勒补充道。
Some people, however, think the availability of a pill will make it more difficult for obese people to be accepted. Tigress Osborn is the leader of an activist group called the National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance.
然而，有些人认为，药片的可获得性会让肥胖的人更难被接受。Tigress Osborn是一个名为“全国肥胖认可协会”的活动团体的领导者。
The news of a weight loss pill, she said, may make it hard for people who are overweight to escape the feeling that "your body is wrong, and it should change."
她说，减肥药物的消息可能会让超重的人难以摆脱“你的身体是错误的，应该改变”的感觉。
The drug companies Eli Lilly and Pfizer are also working on a pill version of their diabetes medications for weight loss.
药企礼来公司和辉瑞公司也正在研发其糖尿病药物的减肥药物片剂版本。
Many of these drugs are so popular for weight loss that they have become hard to get. They are also very costly – some can be over $1,000 per month. Novo Nordisk said it could not predict the cost of their pill. The company also said injectable Wegovy will continue to be hard to get until at least September.
这些药物中的许多在减肥方面非常受欢迎，以至于很难获取。它们也非常昂贵——有些甚至每月超过1,000美元。诺和诺德斯克表示无法预测他们的药片的成本。该公司还表示注射剂Wegovy至少要到9月份之前才能获得。
I'm Dan Friedell. And I'm Ashley Thompson.
我是Dan Friedell。我是Ashley Thompson。
Words in This Story
pill –n. a small, round, solid amount of medicine or vitamin that is taken by mouth
rather – adv. a term used to declare one thing you would prefer over something else when given a choice
overwhelming – adj. something that is larger or greater than something else
afford–v. the ability to pay for something
factor–n. one of the things considered when comparing two items in order to choose which one is better
available–adj. a measure of how common something is
thrilled–adj. very pleased or excited
habit–n. something a person does daily or often
routine–n. something a person does daily or often
