Those Who Fear Illness Die Earlier

Those Who Fear Illness Die Earlier

害怕生病的人死得更早

【听力音频】

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　　By Gregory Stachel

　　21 December 2023

　　A large Swedish study has found an unexpected finding about people diagnosed with extreme fear of serious illness. It found they are more likely to die earlier than people who are not as concerned about their health.

　　Hypochondriasis, now called illness anxiety disorder, is a rare condition with symptoms that go beyond average health concerns. People with the disorder are unable to lose their fears despite normal doctor visits and lab tests. Some may change doctors repeatedly. Others may avoid medical care.

　　Dr. Jonathan E. Alpert of Montefiore Medical Center in New York said, "Many of us are mild hypochondriacs." But he added there are also people on the extreme side of it who are always worrying and thinking about whether they have a serious illness.

　　People with the disorder are suffering and "it's important to take it seriously and to treat it," said Alpert, who was not involved in the new study. Treatment can include behavioral therapy, calming methods, education, and sometimes mental health medication.

　　The researchers have found that people with the condition have an increased risk of death from both natural and unnatural causes, including suicide. Continuing stress and its effects on the body could explain some of the differences, the writers said. The study was published recently in JAMA Psychiatry.

　　David Mataix-Cols of the Karolinska Institute in Sweden led the research. "We got lucky," he said, because the Swedish system for organizing disease has a separate entry for hypochondriasis. That permitted research on thousands of people over 24 years, from 1997 to 2020.

　　Older research had suggested the risk of suicide might be lower for people with the condition. Mataix-Cols said their research found that statement was incorrect. In the study, the risk of suicide death was four times higher for people with the condition.

　　They looked at 4,100 people with hypochondriasis and matched them with 41,000 people similar in age, sex, and where they lived. They used a measurement called person years, which measures the number of people and how long they were followed.

　　Overall death rates were higher in the people with hypochondriasis, 8.5 instead of 5.5 per 1,000 person years. People with the condition died younger than the others, with a mean age of 70 instead of 75. The risk of death from diseases related to body systems, such as breathing and eating, was higher. The risk of death from cancer, however, was about the same.

　　Alpert leads the American Psychiatric Association's group on research. He said more care is needed when suggesting a patient to mental health professionals. Patients can become angry because they feel they are being accused of imagining symptoms.

　　Alpert added, "... fortunately, there are good treatments."

　　I'm Gregory Stachel.

　　Carla K. Johnson reported this story for The Associated Press. Gregory Stachel adapted it for VOA Learning English.

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　　作者：Gregory Stachel

　　日期：2023年12月21日

　　一项大型瑞典研究发现，对严重疾病极度恐惧的人群有一个意想不到的发现。研究发现，他们比那些对自身健康不那么关心的人更可能早死。

　　疑病症，现在被称为疾病焦虑症，是一种罕见的病症，其症状超出了普通的健康关注。即使医生的检查和实验室的测试结果都正常，患有这种疾病的人也无法消除他们的恐惧。有些人可能会反复更换医生，而其他人可能会避免医疗护理。

　　纽约蒙特菲奥尔医疗中心的Jonathan E. Alpert医生说，“我们中的许多人都是轻度的疑病症患者。”但他补充说，也有一些人处于极端状态，他们总是担忧并思考自己是否患有严重的疾病。

　　Alpert医生表示，患有这种疾病的人正在受苦，“重视并治疗它非常重要”，他并未参与这项新研究。治疗可以包括行为疗法、镇静方法、教育，有时还需要精神健康药物。

　　研究人员发现，患有这种疾病的人死于自然和非自然原因的风险都增加，包括自杀。作者们表示，持续的压力及其对身体的影响可能解释了部分差异。这项研究最近发表在《美国医学会精神病学杂志》上。

　　瑞典卡罗林斯卡学院的David Mataix-Cols领导了这项研究。“我们很幸运，”他说，因为瑞典的疾病组织系统为疑病症设有单独的条目。这使得他们能够对从1997年到2020年的24年间的数千人进行研究。

　　早期的研究曾暗示，患有这种疾病的人自杀的风险可能较低。但Mataix-Cols表示，他们的研究发现这个说法是错误的。在这项研究中，患有这种疾病的人自杀死亡的风险是其他人的四倍。

　　他们研究了4100名疑病症患者，并将他们与年龄、性别和居住地相似的41000人进行了匹配。他们使用了一种称为“人年”的测量方法，该方法测量的是人数以及他们被追踪的时间长短。

　　总体上，疑病症患者的死亡率更高，每1000人年为8.5，而不是5.5。患有这种疾病的人比其他人死得更年轻，平均年龄为70岁，而不是75岁。死于与身体系统相关的疾病（如呼吸和饮食）的风险更高。然而，死于癌症的风险大致相同。

　　Alpert领导了美国精神病学协会的研究小组。他说，在建议患者寻求精神健康专业人士的帮助时，需要更加小心。患者可能会因为感到自己被指责想象症状而生气。

　　Alpert补充说，“……幸运的是，有很好的治疗方法。”

　　我是Gregory Stachel。

　　这个故事由卡拉·K·约翰逊为美联社报道。Gregory Stachel为VOA学习英语进行了改编。

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　　这个故事中的词汇：

　　symptom – n. 表明疾病存在的身体或心理的变化

　　therapy – n. 对身体或精神疾病的治疗

　　stress – n. 由生活或工作中的问题引起的精神紧张和担忧

　　match – v. 将（某物）与其他事物进行比较

　　mean – n. 平均

　　fortunately – adv. 用来表示发生了好事或幸运的事