2026届高考外刊打卡阅读day 19 睡不好觉，可能导致大脑提前老化

The Night-Time Shield for Your Brain

大脑的夜间守护者​​

词数：450

改编自：华盛顿邮报

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Main idea

Persistent sleeplessness is more than next-day tiredness—it may quietly speed up brain aging. A Wednesday report in Neurology followed 2,750 mentally healthy seniors (average age 70) for 5.6 years. Annual tests of memory, reasoning and brain scans showed that 14 % of those with chronic insomnia later developed mild cognitive impairment or dementia, compared with only 10 % of sound sleepers. In other words, the insomniac brain had “aged” an extra 3.5 years.

指出长期失眠不仅是小烦恼，更会加速大脑衰老，亮明全文中心论点。

用2,750名老人5.6年追踪数据说明失眠组认知衰退风险更高。

Lead author Diego Z. Carvalho, a sleep-medicine expert at the Mayo Clinic, stresses that the study shows association, not causation. “Poor sleep could be an early warning of decline rather than the trigger,” he says. Still, the dose matters: within the insomnia group, people who slept the fewest hours had the worst scores and the greatest loss of brain tissue.

引述Mayo专家强调“关联≠因果”，指出方向尚不明确。

The findings fit a wave of recent research. A 2021 JAMA Neurology paper found that sleeping less than six or more than nine hours predicted weaker memory and mood problems. Yale neurologist Santiago Clocchiatti-Tuozzo, not involved in the new work, says future public-health strategies (策略) may need to protect both sleep quality and duration.

回顾近十年研究，用2021年JAMA论文佐证“7–8小时最优”。

Why would lost nights hurt the mind? During deep sleep the brain’s glymphatic system—think of it as a nightly street-cleaner—washes away beta-amyloid and other toxins (毒素). If the sweep is cut short, waste builds up, blocking signalling pathways. Karin G. Johnson, a sleep neurologist, adds that

解释深睡时“类淋巴系统”清除毒素的机制，提供生理学依据。

the cleanse follows circadian rhythms (昼夜节律), so mistimed sleep is almost as bad as short sleep. She argues for policy shifts such as later school bells to give teens—tomorrow’s seniors—enough dark hours.

For now, experts offer three evidence-based tips: keep a consistent bedtime, expose yourself to morning sunlight, and remove phones from the bedroom. None guarantee perfect rest, but together they tilt the odds toward a sharper, slower-aging brain. The night, it seems, is not wasted time; it is daily maintenance we cannot skip.

给出三条可行建议，并呼吁政策调整，升华主题。

【基础版】
（适合 90 分学生；蓝思 900-1000L）

1. What is the main idea of the passage?
   A. Sleep pills are harmful to old people.
   B. Poor sleep may make the brain age faster.
   C. Dementia can be completely prevented.
   D. Teenagers need more sunlight than seniors.
2. How many participants developed cognitive problems in the insomnia group?
   A. 10 % B. 14 % C. 3.5 % D. 70 %
3. Dr Carvalho believes the study shows ______.
   A. a cause-effect link B. only an association
   C. a new drug target D. the value of naps
4. The “glymphatic system” is mentioned to explain ______.
   A. why deep sleep cleans the brain
   B. how sunlight sets body clocks
   C. where phones should be kept
   D. when schools ought to start
5. Which of the following is advised in the last paragraph?
   A. Take sleeping pills every night.
   B. Change bedtime frequently.
   C. Get morning sunlight.
   D. Study in bed.

【基础版答案与解析】

1. B 第一段主题句即“sleeplessness…speed up brain aging”。

2. B 文中给出数据“14 % of those with chronic insomnia…”。
3. B 第三段直接引语“shows association, not causation”。
4. A 倒数第二段比喻“nightly street-cleaner”说明清除废物。
5. C 末段三条建议之一“expose yourself to morning sunlight”。

【提高版】
（适合 130 分学生；蓝思 1100-1300L）

1. What can be inferred about the 2,750 seniors at the start of the study?
   A. They had already been diagnosed with mild dementia.
   B. Their mean age was 70 and cognition was normal.
   C. They were selected because they slept exactly 7 hours.
   D. Most of them were Mayo Clinic employees.
2. The phrase “aged an extra 3.5 years” (para. 2) refers to ______.
   A. chronological age recorded on passports
   B. biological brain age inferred from test scores and biomarkers
   C. the number of years the survey lasted
   D. the time it takes for insomnia to develop
3. Which statement best reflects Dr Carvalho’s attitude toward causality?
   A. He is convinced that insomnia directly triggers neuro-degeneration.
   B. He regards the causal arrow as still ambiguous and possibly bidirectional.
   C. He believes reverse causation has already been ruled out.
   D. He thinks sample size is too small to draw any conclusion.
4. The author mentions the 2021 JAMA Neurology study primarily to ______.
   A. contradict the findings reported in Neurology
   B. provide a historical account of sleep science
   C. situate the new results within a growing body of evidence
   D. advertise the journals themselves
5. Which of the following would the author most likely support?
   A. A nationwide campaign that encourages consistent sleep schedules and delayed school start times.
   B. A federal ban on all electronic devices regardless of age.
   C. The use of sleeping pills as the first-line treatment for every senior.
   D. Shortening the follow-up period of future longitudinal studies.

【提高版答案与解析】

1. B 首段明确“2,750 cognitively healthy adults with an average age of 70”。
2. B 第二段给出定义——基于认知表现与 brain biomarkers 推算出的“额外老化”。
3. B 第三段 Carvalho 强调 association 而非 causation，并指出“poor sleep could be an early warning”，