胡杨

Caffeine is a drug that naturally occurs in the leaves and seeds of many plants. Its also produced artificially2 and may be added to certain drinks and foods.

咖啡因是一种天然存在于许多植物的叶子和种子中的药物。它还可以人工生产，或用于添加到某些饮料和食品中。

Its common for teens to reach for energy drinks before a soccer game or to turn to coffee to help them pull an all-night study session. But， drinking too much caffeine could be bad for a teens health.

对于青少年来说，在足球比赛前喝功能饮料或者喝咖啡帮助他们通宵学习是很普遍的现象。但是，喝太多的咖啡因对青少年的健康有害。

Up to 400 mg of caffeine per day appears to be safe for most healthy adults. Its suggested that teens caffeine consumption3 be limited to no more than 100 mg of caffeine per day and children under 12 not be given any caffeine.

对于大多数健康的成年人来说，每天摄入400毫克的咖啡因似乎是安全的。建议青少年每天咖啡因的摄入量不要超过100毫克，12岁以下的儿童不要摄入咖啡因。

Research on caffeine confirms that small doses of caffeine can enhance alertness4， increase information processing speed， awareness， attention， and reaction time. But most of the research has been conducted on adults， not children.

对咖啡因的研究证实，小剂量的咖啡因可以提高警觉性，提高信息处理的速度、意识、注意力和反应时间。但大多数研究都是针对成年人而不是儿童。

Caffeine can cause a number of unwanted side effects in both teens and adults. Some people are more sensitive5 to caffeine than others and just a small amount may produce unwanted effects.

咖啡因会对青少年和成人造成一些不利的副作用。有些人对咖啡因更敏感，而咖啡因则可能会对一小部分人产生不利的影响。

Caffeine may stunt6 childrens development. A study found that young rats who consumed7 the rat-sized equivalent8 of the caffeine in three or four cups of coffee experienced reduced deep sleep and delayed brain development.

咖啡因可能会阻碍儿童的发育。一项研究发现，当汲取了成年老鼠量的三到四倍的咖啡因剂量的时候，幼鼠会减少深度睡眠，大脑发育延缓。

Caffeine has great effect on a teens sleep. Every 10 milligrams of caffeine a 13-year-old boy consumes decreases his chances of getting 8.5 hours of sleep by 12 percent. It can affect teens education， mental health， and physical health.

咖啡因对青少年的睡眠有很大的影响。13岁的男孩每摄入10毫克咖啡因，会减少8个半小时睡眠的几率的12%。这会影响他们的学习和身心健康。

Caffeine may also cause the body to lose calcium9. Consuming too much caffeine could lead to bone loss over time. Drinking soda or energy drinks instead of milk may also place a teen at a higher risk of developing osteoporosis10.

咖啡因也可能導致身体钙流失。摄入过多的咖啡因会导致骨质疏松。饮用苏打水或功能饮料代替牛奶也可能会增加患骨质疏松症的风险。

Many people report feeling “addicted11” to caffeine because they have trouble quitting or cut-ting back on their caffeine intake. Some people continue consuming it even though they experience unwanted psychological12 or physical side effects.endprint

许多人认为咖啡因能让人“上瘾”是因为他们很难戒掉或减少咖啡因的摄入量。有些人即使体验过了咖啡因引起的心理或生理上的副作用之后，仍然会继续摄入它。

You cant control all the things your teen chooses to eat and drink when youre not around. But， you can take steps to encourage him to develop healthy habits and limit his caffeine consumption. Here are some steps you can take to educate your teen about caffeine and keep his consumption to a minimum13：

当你不在孩子身边的时候，你无法控制你的孩子选择的所有吃喝的东西。但是，你可以采取措施鼓励他养成健康的习惯，限制他的咖啡因摄入量。可以采用以下方法来教授你的孩子关于咖啡因的知识以及让他尽量少摄入咖啡因：

Drink water and milk. Dont buy teas， energy drinks， and other drinks with a lot of caffeine. Instead， make it a habit for everyone in the family to drink water and low-fat milk.

喝水和牛奶。不要买茶、功能饮料和其他含有大量咖啡因的饮料。要让家里每个人都养成喝低脂牛奶的习惯。

Talk about good health. Many caffeinated drinks contain a lot of sugar， which can contribute to obesity14 and tooth decay15. So limiting caffeine could be better for you teens overall health. Make sure your teen knows that energy drinks and sugar-sweetened teas arent good for him or her.

经常谈谈健康问题吧。很多含咖啡因的饮料含有大量的糖，会导致肥胖和蛀牙。所以限制咖啡因的摄入对青少年的健康有好处。要让你的孩子知道功能饮料和含糖的茶对他或她没有好处。

Be a good role model. If you turn to coffee to help you function， your teen may grow to believe it is a normal part of adult life. And that could lead him to develop bad habits.

做一个好榜样吧。如果你用喝咖啡来提神，你的孩子可能会逐渐认为这就是成人生活的一部分。这可能会导致他养成坏习惯。

Talk to your teen about the dangers of caffeine， in the same way you discuss drugs or alcohol. Warn your teen that consuming too much could cause serious problems for him.

和你的孩子谈谈咖啡因的危害吧，就像你们讨论毒品和酒精的危害一样。提醒你的孩子，过度摄入咖啡因会给他带来严重问题。

Limit afternoon and evening caffeine. Drinking a Frappuccino after school or a soda after basketball practice could keep your teen up half the night. If hes going to drink something with caffeine in it， make sure its early in the day.

要限制下午和晚上的咖啡因摄入。放学后喝一杯星冰乐（星巴克的招牌饮料），或者在篮球练习后喝一瓶苏打水，会让你的孩子半个晚上都睡不着。如果他想喝含有咖啡因的东西，那就一定要让他在早上喝。

Be on the lookout for signs that your teen is consuming a lot of caffeine. If your teen is having trouble sleeping， investigate what hes been eating and drinking.

要注意觀察你的孩子是否有摄入大量咖啡因的迹象。如果你的孩子有睡眠问题，调查一下他近来吃了什么，喝了什么。

Help your teen cut back. If your teen regularly consumes more caffeine than she should， help her cut back. Be aware she may experience some unpleasant withdrawal16 symptoms17 if she suddenly gives caffeine up altogether.

要帮你的孩子减少咖啡因的摄入。如果你的孩子经常摄入过多的咖啡因，那就应该帮她减少摄入量。要注意的是，如果她突然把咖啡因完全戒掉，可能会有一些不愉快的戒断症状。endprint