Americans, and American physicians, are concerned about ballooning waistlines and the accompanying health problems. Now, researchers have presented the first randomized trial of what they hail as a side-effect-free, prescription-free and simply free appetite control agent. That is, of course, water. Brenda Davy, lead researcher from Virginia Tech, presented the findings at the National Meeting of the American Chemical Society.

Previous studies showed that middle-aged and older Americans who drank two cups of water before a meal ate about 75 to 90 fewer calories over the course of the meal. For this study, the scientists took 48 adults between 55 and 75. All ate a low-calorie diet for 12 weeks. Half of the group drank 16 ounces of water before meals. The other half didn’t.

After the 12 weeks were over, the water drinkers lost on average 15.5 pounds, while the ones who weren’t prescribed water lost about 11 pounds. Davy says that this phenomenon could occur because water is filling and has, of course, zero calories. It could also be displacing other, sweeter drinks that the dieters might consume. It’s not a cure-all, but it’s certainly a cheap and simple addition to any weight-loss plan.

美国人和美国的医生对他们激增的腰围以及随之而来的健康问题都很担心。目前，研究者们发表首次的随机试验结果，他们高度称赞一种无副作用、不需吃药、而且完全免费的胃口控制剂。当然，这种东西就是水了。来自弗吉利亚理工大学（Virginia Tech）的首席研究者Brenda Davy在美国化学会全国会议（National Meeting of the American Chemical Society）上报道了她们的研究结果。
以前的研究表明，那些在饭前喝两杯水的中年以及老年美国人，他们在就餐中摄入的热量要少75至90大卡。在该项研究中，科学家们选择的研究对象是年龄在55至75岁之间的48位成年人。所有这些人都吃低热量的饮食，他们节食的时间为12周。其中一半的人在餐前喝16盎司的水，另一半的人餐前不喝水。
12周以后，餐前喝水的人体重平均减少了15.5磅，而餐前不喝水的人减少了大概11磅。Davy说，出现这种现象是因为水占据胃的空间，而且热量为零。还有可能就是水取代了节食者们可能会喝的其它甜味饮料。当然，喝水也不是万能的减肥办法，但是对于任何减肥计划来说，喝水当然是一种既便宜又简单的辅助办法。

1. physician  n.内科医生
2. balloon  n.气球 
3. waistline  n. 腰围 
4. randomize  vt. 形成不规则分布, 使 ... 随机化 
5. calorie  n. 卡, 卡路里(热量单位)=calory
6. prescribe  vt.开(药)，吩咐用(疗法)；指定 
7. dieter  n. 节食者