Question

    In the early days of sea travel, seamen on long voyages lived exclusively on salted meat and biscuits. Many of them died of scurvy (坏血病), a disease of the blood which causes swollen gums (牙龈), livid white spots on the flesh and general exhaustion. On one occasion, in 1535, an English ship arrived in Newfoundland with its crew desperately ill. The men’s lives were saved by Iroquois Indians who gave them vegetable leaves to eat. Gradually it came to be realized that scurvy was caused by some lack in the sailors’ diet and Captain Cook, on his long voyages of discovery to Australia and New Zealand, established the fact that scurvy could be prevented by the supply of fresh fruit for the sailors.

Nowadays it is understood that a diet which contains nothing harmful may yet result in serious disease if certain important elements are missing. These elements are called “vitamins”. Quite a number of such substances are known and they are given letters to identify them, A, B, C, D, and so on. Different diseases are associated with shortages of particular vitamins. Even a slight lack of Vitamin C, for example, the vitamin most plentiful in fresh fruit and vegetables, is thought to increase significantly our susceptibility (敏感度) to colds and influenza.

The vitamins necessary for a healthy body are normally supplied by a good mixed diet, including a variety of fruit and green vegetables. It is only when people try to live on a very restricted diet, say during extended periods of religious fasting (斋戒), or when trying to lose weight, that it is necessary to make special supply to make up for the missing vitamins.

1.Scurvy is a disease that is caused by      .

A.salted meat and biscuits B.exhaustion

C.lack of some essential substances D.need of fresh vegetables and fruits

2.To avoid such disease as scurvy, it’s better for us      .

A.not to eat much salted meat

B.to supply our diet with various vitamin pills

C.to have more fresh fruit and vegetables

D.to develop a good dietary habit

3.Based on the passage we can safely conclude that if our diet is not comprehensive enough,      .

A.vitamin pills are of no use

B.nutritious food might be unhealthy

C.vegetable leaves can be a good treatment

D.religious fasting may help out a lot

4.Which of the following sentences best expresses the main idea of the passage?

A.Shortages of Vitamin C may cause serious diseases.

B.Fresh fruit and green vegetables contain enough nutrition that is necessary for a healthy body.

C.Vitamins play a vitally important role in people’s health.

D.A good mixed diet normally supplies sufficient vitamins for us.

Answer

1.C

2.D

3.B

4.C

【解析】

这是一篇说明文。文章主要讲了维生素在人们的健康中起着至关重要的作用。健康身体所需的维生素通常由良好的混合饮食提供，包括各种水果和绿色蔬菜。

1.细节理解题。根据第一段Gradually it came to be realized that scurvy was caused by some lack in the sailors’ diet and Captain Cook, on his long voyages of discovery to Australia and New Zealand, established the fact that scurvy could be prevented by the supply of fresh fruit for the sailors.(人们逐渐认识到，坏血病是由于水手们的饮食中缺少某种营养而引起的。库克船长在到澳大利亚和新西兰的长途航行中，发现了坏血病是可以通过向水手们提供新鲜水果来预防的这一事实)可知，坏血病是一种由于缺乏某些必需物质而引起的疾病。故选C。

2.推理判断题。根据最后一段The vitamins necessary for a healthy body are normally supplied by a good mixed diet, including a variety of fruit and green vegetables.(健康身体所需的维生素通常由良好的混合饮食提供，包括各种水果和绿色蔬菜)推断出，为了避免坏血病等疾病，我们最好养成良好的饮食习惯。故选D。

3.推理判断题。根据第二段Nowadays it is understood that a diet which contains nothing harmful may yet result in serious disease if certain important elements are missing.(现在人们知道，不含任何有害成分的饮食，如果缺少某些重要的成分，可能会导致严重的疾病)推断出，根据这篇文章，我们可以有把握地得出结论，如果我们的饮食不够全面，有营养的食物可能是不健康的。故选B。

4.主旨大意题。第二段Different diseases are associated with shortages of particular vitamins.(不同的疾病都与特定维生素的缺乏有关)是全文的主题句，结合全文内容，可知这篇文章主要讲了维生素在人们的健康中起着至关重要的作用。故选C。