FDA: Human, Animal Waste Threatens Produce

¡¡¡¡The biggest food safety risk for fresh fruits and vegetables as they are grown, picked or processed comes from human and animal waste, the U. S. Food and Drug Administration £¨FDA£©.  said Friday.

¡¡¡¡More than 9, 000 Americans die each year from food-borne diseases and some scientists believe fresh produce is the biggest carrier of contamination.

¡¡¡¡The FDA issued a set of draft guidelines for U. S. and foreign growers to carefully monitor worker hygiene, water quality, manure management and transportation.

¡¡¡¡These 34-page draft guidelines urged growers to give workers lessons on basic hygiene such as using soap to wash their hands, covering wounds that could come into contact with produce, and using only clean toilets.

¡¡¡¡The FDA guidelines identified ¡°the major source of contamination ¡±for fresh produce as human or animal feces.

¡¡¡¡¡°We think just proper controls and proper attention to detail would make a big difference in food safety,¡± said and FDA official, ¡°It is our belief that these guidelines would not be very costly.¡±

¡¡¡¡But grower groups disagreed with the FDA's assessment. ¡°Most food-borne disease outbreaks that happen further down the distribution line are due to contamination because people preparing food are not properly washing their hands, ¡±said Stacey Zawal, an official with United Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Association. ¡°That is not necessarily true for growers and packers.¡±

¡¡¡¡Some U. S. grower organizations have expressed concern that the agency is interfering with on-farm practices. Others object to the FDA's proposal to have growers formally document the picking, handling and transportation of produce so that health officials could quickly recall foods if necessary.

¡¡¡¡Consumer groups criticized the FDA guidelines as of little use because they will not carry the force of law. But stricter regulations could evolve as researchers find new technology or methods to kill harmful bacteria or parasites, the FDA said.

¡¡¡¡The FDA recommendations are due to be made final by the FDA later this year for use by U.S. and foreign growers. The matter of encouraging foreign growers to adopt the guidelines remains somewhat tricky but FDA officials say it is vital because of the huge amount of imported produce.

¡¡¡¡1. ¡°Food-borne diseases¡± in this essay means those diseases
¡¡¡¡A. which people get by eating fruits which have been polluted
¡¡¡¡B. which people get by eating too many kinds of food.
¡¡¡¡C. which many kinds of fruit get when polluted by feces.
¡¡¡¡D. which fruit-growers get by their failure to keep themselves clean.

¡¡¡¡2. Some fruit grower groups believe that most food-borne diseases are caused by
¡¡¡¡A. growers' lack of attention to personal hygiene.
¡¡¡¡B. lack of effective guidelines.
¡¡¡¡C. the FDA's decision to import more foreign fruits and vegetables.
¡¡¡¡D. people involved in distributing fresh produce.

¡¡¡¡3. An FDA official said that putting the guidelines into practice
¡¡¡¡A. would be too costly to be effective.
¡¡¡¡B. would not cost any money.
¡¡¡¡C. would not be very expensive.
¡¡¡¡D. would needs lots of money.

¡¡¡¡4. Consumer groups criticized the FDA guidelines because they didn't think that these guidelines
¡¡¡¡A. had won enough support from the farmers.
¡¡¡¡B. had been written with strict regulations.
¡¡¡¡C. would surely be carried out.
¡¡¡¡D. included new technology.

¡¡¡¡5. The last paragraph suggests that
¡¡¡¡A. some tricks need to be adopted to encourage foreign growers to follow the FDA guidelines.
¡¡¡¡B. a good way should be found to encourage foreign growers to follow the FDA guidelines.
¡¡¡¡C. foreign growers consider the guidelines to be of great importance to them.
¡¡¡¡D. it is almost impossible to ask foreign farmers to follow the guidelines.

Dreams

¡¡¡¡Studies show that in dreams things are seen and heard rather than thought. In terms of the senses, visual experience is present in almost all dreams; auditory experience in 40 to 50 percent; and touch, taste, smell, and pain in a relatively small percentage. A considerable amount of emotion is commonly present, usually a pure and single emotion such as fear, anger, or joy.

¡¡¡¡Two clearly distinguishable states of sleep exist. The first state, called NREM-sleep £¨non-rapid- eye-movement sleep£©, occupies most of the sleep period and is associated with a relatively low pulse and blood pressure, and few or no reports of dreaming. The second type of sleep, known as REM-sleep£¨rapid-eye-movement sleep£©occurs cyclically during the sleep period with rapid eye movements and frequent dream reports. Typically, a person has four or five periods of REM-sleep during the night, whether the dreams are remembered often, rarely, or not at all; they occur at intervals of about 90 minutes and altogether make up about 25 percent of the night's sleep£¨as much as 50 percent in a newborn child£©. Evidence indicates that a dream period usually lasts from 5 to 20 minutes. Sounds and touches working on a dreamer can go into a dream if they occur during a REM-period. Although mental activity may be reported during NREM-sleep, these are usually short pieces of thought like experiences.

¡¡¡¡Modern dream research has focused on two general interpretations of dream content. In one view, dreams have no meaning of their own but are simply a process by which the brain integrates new information into memories. In the other view, dreams contain real meaning symbolized in a picture language distinct from conscious logical though. If dreams express important wishes, fears, concerns, and worries of the dreamer, the study and analysis of dreams can help reveal previously unknown aspects of a person's mental functioning.

¡¡¡¡1. There are in general two opinions about what we experience in a dream:
¡¡¡¡A. one, we ¡°see¡± our dreams, and two, we ¡°think¡± our dreams.
¡¡¡¡B. one, we are happy, and two, we are angry.
¡¡¡¡C. one, dreams put new information into our memories, and two, dreams have real meanings in pictures different from our logical thinking.
¡¡¡¡D. we have pictures in dreams because one, we have slow eye movements, and two, we have rapid eye movements.

¡¡¡¡2. According to this article, we
¡¡¡¡A. often think seriously when we are dreaming.
¡¡¡¡B. hardly ever hear music when we are dreaming.
¡¡¡¡C. very often feel something tastes good when we are dreaming.
¡¡¡¡D. almost always see different ¡°pictures¡± when we are dreaming.

¡¡¡¡3. In your dreams, you
¡¡¡¡A. very often feel happy and unhappy at the same time.
¡¡¡¡B. always feel that you are afraid of somebody.
¡¡¡¡C. seldom feel fear now and joy later.
¡¡¡¡D. only feel anger.

¡¡¡¡4. This essay tells us that
¡¡¡¡A. people usually dream in a NREM sleep.
¡¡¡¡B. people usually dream in an REM sleep.
¡¡¡¡C. people always remember what they have dreamed in an REM sleep.
¡¡¡¡D. people may have an REM sleep all night through.

¡¡¡¡5. Based on what is discussed in this writing, an adult may have at most about _______ of the time of his or her sleep dreaming.
¡¡¡¡A. 90% 
¡¡¡¡B. 50%
¡¡¡¡C. 25%
¡¡¡¡D. 20%

Diabetes

¡¡¡¡Most of the food we eat is turned into glucose for our bodies to use for energy. The pancreas, an organ near the stomach, makes a hormone called insulin to help glucose get into your body cells. When you have diabetes, your body either doesn't make enough insulin or can't use its own insulin well. This problem causes glucose to build up in your blood.

¡¡¡¡You may recall having some of these signs before you found out you had diabetes£º
¡¡¡¡ª³*Being very thirsty.
¡¡¡¡ª³*Urinating a lot¡ªoften at night.
¡¡¡¡ª³*Having unclear vision from time to time.
¡¡¡¡ª³*Feeling very tired much of the time.
¡¡¡¡ª³*Losing weight without trying.
¡¡¡¡ª³*Having very dry skin.
¡¡¡¡ª³*Having sores that are slow to heal.
¡¡¡¡ª³*Getting more infections than usual.
¡¡¡¡ª³*Vomiting.

¡¡¡¡Two main types of diabetes are Type 1 and Type 2. Another type of diabetes appears during pregnancy in some women. It's called gestational diabetes.

¡¡¡¡One out of ten people with diabetes has Type 1 diabetes. These people usually find out they have diabetes when they are children or young adults. The pancreas of a person with Type 1 makes little or no insulin. People with Type 1 diabetes must inject insulin every day to live.

¡¡¡¡Most people with diabetes have Type 2 diabetes. The pancreas of people with such diabetes keeps making insulin for some time, but the body can't use it well. Most people with Type 2 find out about their diabetes after age 30 or 40.

¡¡¡¡Some risk factors which make people more likely to get Type 2 diabetes are£º
¡¡¡¡ª³*A family history of diabetes.
¡¡¡¡ª³*Lack of exercise.
¡¡¡¡ª³*Weighing too much.

¡¡¡¡Diabetes can hurt your eyes, your kidneys, and your nerves. It can lead to problems with the blood circulation in your body. Even your teeth and gums can be harmed. And diabetes in pregnancy can cause special problems.

¡¡¡¡1. This writing is meant to tell people
¡¡¡¡A. how to avoid getting diabetes.
¡¡¡¡B. what to pay attention to when they have diabetes.
¡¡¡¡C. what diabetes is.
¡¡¡¡D. about the latest development in curing diabetes.

¡¡¡¡2. A person with diabetes may have had all the following signs EXCEPT
¡¡¡¡A. becoming fatter and fatter.
¡¡¡¡B. becoming thinner and thinner.
¡¡¡¡C. having to get out of bed at night and urinate.
¡¡¡¡D. feeling like drinking a lot of water very often.

¡¡¡¡3. Which of the following statements is TRUE?
¡¡¡¡A. Most persons with Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes are women in pregnancy.
¡¡¡¡B. Most women in pregnancy may have the danger of getting diabetes.
¡¡¡¡C. We find more persons with Type 2 diabetes among children than adults.
¡¡¡¡D. We find more persons with Type 2 diabetes among adults than children.

¡¡¡¡4. When you have Type 2 diabetes, it is sometimes possible to find that
¡¡¡¡A. your teenage son has diabetes too.
¡¡¡¡B. your father has diabetes too.
¡¡¡¡C. your father-in-law is too fat.
¡¡¡¡D. your brother does not like sports.

¡¡¡¡5. People get diabetes because
¡¡¡¡A. their stomachs are not able to produce enough insulin.
¡¡¡¡B. their pancreas are not able to produce enough glucose.
¡¡¡¡C. there is too much glucose in their blood.
¡¡¡¡D. there is too much insulin in their blood.