2020考研英语阅读理解精读100篇：Unit 90

Unit 90

Watching a child struggle to breathe during an asthma attack is frightening for any parent. So it is only natural that most moms and dads will try just about anything—including spending a lot of money—to keep an attack at bay. Trouble is, more than half of parents are trying strategies that simply don’t work and wasting hundreds of dollars in the process, according to a study published last week in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.

The report, based on interviews with the parents of 896 asthmatic children in 10 different cities, contained some good news. Eighty percent of parents had a handle on at least one of the triggers that worsened their children’s asthma. After that, however, many parents seemed to go astray, taking precautions that weren’t helpful “and made little sense,” according to Dr. Michael Cabana, a pediatrician at the University of Michigan’s C. S. Mott Children’s Hospital, who led the study.

One of the most common mistakes was to buy a mattress cover to protect against dust mites for a child whose asthma was exacerbated instead by plant pollen. Many of those parents then neglected to do what would have helped a lot more: shut the windows to keep pollen out. Another was using a humidifier for a child who was allergic to dust mites; a humidifier tends to be a place where dust mites like to breed. With those allergies, a dehumidifier works better.

Worst of all was the number of smokers with asthmatic children who didn’t even try to quit or at least limit themselves to smoking outdoors rather than just moving to another room or the garage. Second-hand smoke has been proved, over and over again, to be a major trigger of asthma attacks. Many smoking parents purchased expensive air filters that have what Cabana called “questionable utility.”

Part of the problem, Dr. Cabana and his colleagues believe, is that parents are bombarded by television ads that encourage them to buy products such as air and carpet fresheners, ionizers and other remedies that are often expensive but medically unnecessary. And doctors may not always take the time, or have the time, to explain to parents what will and won’t work in their child’s particular case. For example, allergies are usually a problem for older children with asthma, while kids 5 and younger more frequently have trouble with viral respiratory infections. So make sure you understand what’s really triggering your child’s asthma. And remember, the best solutions are not always the most expensive ones.

注（1）：本文选自Time；

注（2）：本文习题命题模仿对象为2004年真题Text 1。

1. What does the study by Dr. Michael Cabana indicate?

A) Parents are eager to cure their children’s disease.

B) Many parents are wasting money for their children’s frightening disease.

C) Many parents fail to find the effective way for their children’s disease.

D) Parents feel worried about their children’s disease.

2. Which of the following is NOT the trigger of asthma attacks?

A) Humidifier.

B) Second-hand smoke.

C) Plant pollen.

D) Dust mites.

3. The expression “to keep an attack at bay” （Line 3, Paragraph 1） most probably means ______.

A) to ease the attack

B) to lessen the attack

C) to continue the attack

D) to prevent the attack

4. Why are the parents in such a dilemma?

A) The doctors are not responsible enough.

B) Parents are influenced much by ads.

C) Parents are ignorant of the disease.

D) The quality of medical products is not good.

5. Which of the following is TRUE according to the text?

A) Parents shouldn’t spend too much money on the children.

B) The expensive products are not always good.

C) To know the real trigger of the disease is very important.

D) Parents often make mistakes.

篇章剖析

本文采用提出问题—说明问题—分析问题的模式，指出哮喘病患儿的家长在防治哮喘方面存在的问题及错误。第一段提出有关哮喘病的一项研究成果；第二段进一步补充第一段的论点，指出很多家长对孩子的病情无计可施这一现象；第三段和第四段指出家长的错误做法；第五段分析其原因并提出建议。

词汇注释

asthma /ˈæsmə;(US)ˈæzmə/ n. 【医】哮喘

keep at bay阻止；挡住

allergy /ˈælədʒi/ n. 【医】敏感症；〈口〉反感

immunology /ɪmjuːˈnɒlədʒi/ n. 【生】免疫学

have a handle on理解，明白

trigger /ˈtrɪgə(r)/ n. 能引起反应的刺激物

go astray 误入迷途

pediatrician /ˌpiːdɪəˈtrɪʃən/ n. 儿科医师

dust mite 尘螨

humidifier /hjuːmɪdɪˈfaɪə(r)/ n. 加湿器

allergic /əˈlɜːdʒɪk/ adj. 【医】过敏的，患过敏症的

bombard /bɒmˈbɑːd/ vt. 炮轰；轰击；攻击；质问

ionizer /ˈaɪənaɪzə/ n. 离子发生器

respiratory /rɪˈspɪrətəri;(US)-tɔːri/ adj. 呼吸的

难句突破

Part of the problem, Dr. Cabana and his colleagues believe, is that parents are bombarded by television ads that encourage them to buy products such as air and carpet fresheners, ionizers and other remedies that are often expensive but medically unnecessary.

主体句式：Part of the problem is that...

结构分析：本句有一个表语从句。句子主语是part of the problem，Dr. Cabana and his colleagues believe是插入语，that引导表语从句；在从句中，又有that引导的定语从句修饰ads；在定语从句中又有that引导的定语从句修饰remedies。

句子译文：卡巴娜博士和他的同事认为，部分问题在于家长经不住电视广告的狂轰滥炸。这些电视广告怂恿他们购买那些往往昂贵却没有医疗效果的产品，比如空气和地毯清洁剂、离子发生器和其他一些药品。

题目分析

1. C 推理题。原文对应信息是首段的“Trouble is, more than half of parents are trying strategies that simply don’t work and wasting hundreds of dollars in the process.”在第二段中，作者又进一步论证了这一点，指出家长采取的预防措施是“ weren’t helpful ‘and made little sense’”。

2. A 细节题。文章第三段提到了两种过敏源：尘螨和花粉；第四段提到的过敏源是二手烟；加湿器不是过敏源，而是在某种情况下会为过敏源提供滋生地，从而诱发哮喘。

3. D 语义题。本文开头第一、二句为因果关系。第一句提到“Watching a child struggle to breathe during an asthma attack is frightening for any parent. ”那么家长为了避免孩子哮喘病发作想尽一切办法甚至花费大笔钱财的做法是再自然不过的了。根据短语所在的语境可猜出语义。

4. B 细节题。原文对应信息是“Part of the problem is that parents are bombarded by television ads that encourage them to buy products such as... that are often expensive but medically unnecessary.”做父母的爱子心切，只要是对孩子的病情有用的东西真是不惜一切代价弄到。广告的强大攻势更是对父母产生了较强的影响，加之对孩子的病情又不是特别了解，从而丧失了判断力。

5. C 细节题。原文对应信息是末段的“So make sure you understand what’s really triggering your child’s asthma.”

参考译文

对每一位家长来说，看到自己的孩子哮喘病发作而挣扎着呼吸真是令人胆战心惊。因此，大多数父母想尽一切办法甚至不惜花费大笔钱财来预防其子女哮喘病发作的做法也就再自然不过了。但问题是，有一多半父母采取的应对措施并没有发挥效应，他们只是在浪费大把的钱财——这个结论是依据上周出版的《过敏症和临床免疫学》杂志上刊载的一项研究结果得出来的。

这篇报道采访了10个不同城市的896名哮喘患儿的父母，其中还是有好消息的。80%的父母至少知道一种使孩子病情恶化的诱因。但是，除此以外，很多家长就无计可施了，采取的预防措施帮助不大，“而且毫无道理”，迈克尔·卡巴纳博士如是说。他是牵头这一研究的密歇根大学C. S. Mott儿童医院的儿科医生。

其中一种最为常见的错误就是为由于植物花粉过敏而导致哮喘病加重的孩子购买床褥保护套去抵挡尘螨的侵扰。很多家长忘记了一个更为有效的办法：关紧窗户，避免花粉干扰。另一种常见错误就是为对尘螨过敏的孩子购买加湿器；殊不知加湿器是尘螨最易于繁殖的地方。对于这类过敏症，使用干燥器作用会更大些。

最糟糕的一种情况是家有患哮喘病的孩子，可抽烟的家长不但不戒烟，还不到外面抽，也不换个房间或到车库去抽。吸二手烟一次又一次地被证实是哮喘病发作的主要诱因。很多抽烟的家长不惜花大价钱购买被卡巴纳称为“值得怀疑的器具”的空气过滤器。

卡巴纳博士和他的同事认为，部分问题在于家长经不住电视广告的狂轰滥炸。这些电视广告怂恿他们购买那些往往昂贵却没有医疗效果的产品，比如空气和地毯清洁剂、离子发生器和其他一些药品。医生可能也不会花时间，或者说有时间去向父母解释对于孩子的具体病例什么有用、什么没用。比如说，大龄哮喘病儿童患者通常是过敏症，而五岁或五岁以下的儿童常常是病毒性呼吸道感染疾病。所以你一定得弄清楚孩子患哮喘病的真正诱因，并且记住，花钱最多的办法并不一定就是最好的办法。