Next time your child asks why they have to eat broccoli, you can give them the reason – thanks to scientists who made people eat it every day for three months.
下次，你的孩子问为什么他们要吃花椰菜，你就可以给他们解释理由了。多亏科学家们做的这项研究让志愿者每天都吃西兰花，坚持吃三个月的时间，得出了研究结论，给出了问题的答案。
They discovered that a chemical found solely in the vegetable helps maintain the health of the tiny "batteries" which power the body’s cells.
他们仅在西兰花这种蔬菜中发现一种类似小“电池”功能的化学物质，它有助于保持细胞的健康。
This, it is thought, helps ward off health problems including cancer and heart disease.
他们认为这种蔬菜有助于抵御包括癌症和心脏病这类健康问题。
Scientists from the Institute of Food Research in Norwich ran detailed blood tests on men and women before and after they ate the vegetable.
诺维奇食品研究所的科学家对吃了西兰花这种蔬菜前后的男性和女性做了详细的血液测试。
Nineteen volunteers ate 400g of broccoli a week – three florets a day – alongside their normal food for three months.
第一组的19名志愿者一周吃了400克西兰花。除了正常饭菜外，每天都吃三小朵西兰花。这样坚持吃了三个月，
Another 19 ate a "super-broccoli" called Beneforte, which is bred to be extra-rich in glucoraphanin, a plant chemical.
另一组的19名志愿者吃了一种称为Beneforte的“超级花椰菜”，对这种花椰菜另外进行培育使其富含硫代葡萄糖苷这种植物中含的化学物质。
The final group ate peas.
最后一组志愿者吃豌豆。
Eating the glucoraphanin-rich broccoli led to improvements in the various chemical reactions that go on inside mitochondria, the "batteries" in cells.
吃富含硫代葡萄糖苷的西兰花可改进线粒体——细胞中的“电池”——中的各种化学反应。
They also have several other vital functions, which all need to be in balance for good health.
花椰菜这类蔬菜也有一些其他的重要功能，都是健康平衡饮食所需的。
While researchers believe the same benefits could be obtained by eating normal broccoli, there’s some bad news if you’re not a fan of it – they think you’d need to eat three times as much.
虽然研究人员认为平时常吃花椰菜对健康同样有益，但是如果你不喜欢吃西兰花的话，他们认为你需要吃三倍的西兰花，可能这是个噩耗。
Researcher Professor Richard Mithen said: "Mitochondria are really, really important and when they start to go wrong it leads onto many of the diseases of aging."
这项研究的研究员理查德教授说：“线粒体真的、真的很重要，当线粒体开始出现问题，则会引起许多与年老有关的疾病。”
"We think this provides some evidence as to why people who eat diets rich in broccoli may keep in good health."
“关于为什么那些节食减肥的人吃西兰花可以维持身体健康，我们认为这项研究结果为其提供了一些证据。”
He added: "The message is to eat a balanced diet and get some exercise and if you want to eat Beneforte broccoli, that’s all well and good and it may give you a little extra benefit. "
他补充说：“发布这个消息就是为了让人们均衡饮食并锻炼身体，如果你想要吃Beneforte西兰花，完全可以。这种蔬菜对身体健康有益，并且它可能会对你的身体健康有额外的好处。”