Better Sidewalks Could Bring Improved Public Health / 更好的人行道可以改善公众健康

Most of our serious illnesses and deaths in the U.S. now come from preventable diseases, such as heart disease.

在美国，我们大多数严重的疾病和死亡现在都来自可预防的疾病，比如心脏病。

But we know what works to improve health.

但我们知道什么能改善健康。

A new report recommends 43 changes that can make big improvements.

一份新的报告引荐了43项可以带来大幅提升的改变。

To arrive at their recommendations, researchers reviewed more than a thousand studies of public health.

为了得出他们的引荐建议，研究人员回顾了一千多项关于公众健康的研究。

Their findings are in the American Heart Association journal Circulation.

他们的研究结果发表在美国心脏协会期刊《循环》上。

Some of the suggestions, such as tightening restrictions on smoking, are already paying off in many areas.

其中一些建议，例如加强对吸烟的限制，已经在许多领域取得了成效。

Others, such as increasing taxes for unhealthful foods, might face stiff opposition, but could pay off large dividends in health savings later.

其他一些措施，比如对不健康食品加税，可能会遭到强烈反对，但可能会在以后长期的卫健事业中取得大笔红利。

But some surprisingly simple suggestions could be easiest to institute.

但一些令人惊讶的简单建议却可能是最容易实行的。

Try extending the hours for public parks and schools' recreation facilities.

（例如）尽量延长公园和学校的健身设施的开放时间。

Or improving sidewalks and visual appeal of neighborhoods to make people want to walk, bike or run there more often.

或者改善人行道和社区设施的外观吸引力，让人们更愿意在那里散步、骑车或跑步。

The authors of the paper argue that the next step is just for policy makers to put these changes into action.

这篇论文的作者认为，下一步，只需政策制定者将这些改变付诸行动。

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本文节选自《60-Second Science American》