節日荷爾蒙 毀了聖誕節？

It's no secret that Christmas is a stressful time.
聖誕節是一個充滿壓力的節日，這並不是什麼祕密。

But scientists say the season's hectic schedule and excesses of festive eating can wreak havoc upon hormones, driving even the sanest person slightly cuckoo come Boxing Day.
但科學家們發現繁多的節日安排和不規律的節日飲食會導致荷爾蒙分泌紊亂，讓最理智的人也變得瘋狂起來。

Writing in the Journal of Neuroendocrinology earlier this year, the University of Edinburgh's Mike Ludwig, predicted that come December, 'it is inevitable that, once again, we will again totally surrender to the effects of our Christmas hormones.'
今年早些時候，愛丁堡大學的邁克·路德維格（Mike Ludwig）在《神經內分泌學雜誌》撰文預測道：到了十二月，“我們會不可避免的再一次成爲聖誕荷爾蒙作用的俘虜。”

He goes so far as describing their effects as 'traumatic.'
他甚至將這種作用定義爲“創傷性的”。

Just how much those 'Christmas hormones' take hostage of our bodies is described by Dr Robert Lustig from the University of California at San Francisco.
加州大學舊金山分校的羅伯特·勒斯蒂格（Robert Lustig）博士向我們介紹了“聖誕荷爾蒙”對身體會產生何種程度的影響。

He told ABC's Good Morning America that the season is fraught with hormonally-driven behaviour - driving irrational actions and thoughts.
在荷爾蒙的影響下，我們會產生不理智的思想和行動。在ABC電視臺的早安美國節目中，他這樣說道。

'Certainly, it brings out the best and worst of us in every which way,' said the neuroendocrinologist and professor of paediatrics. He says a potent mix of cortisol, serotonin and dopamine are at play over the holiday season.
按照這位神經內分泌學專家和兒科專家的說法，“聖誕荷爾蒙會讓我們最好的一面和最壞的一面都展現出來。”這其實是我們體內的皮質醇， 血清素和多巴胺在作怪。

While the togetherness of Christmas - ultimately what the day is all about - fosters surges in the happiness hormone, serotonin, the build up is characterised by high levels of stress, or cortisol.
聖誕節家人團聚的幸福感會使血清素水平升高，伴隨而來的高度緊張感又會使得皮質醇水平升高。

We seek quick contentment fixes in food, for example, which boost dopamine levels temporarily.
從食物中獲取的快速的滿足感，會使多巴胺水平短暫上升。

And the more that dopamine is triggered, the larger the amounts of food that are needed to feel the hormone's pleasurable effects - which leads to over-eating, peaks and troughs of insulin and sugar highs and lows.
多巴胺水平越高，我們就需要越多的食物來維持多巴胺帶來的愉悅感——這樣的暴飲暴食會導致胰島素和血糖水平忽高忽低。

In the meantime, high stress levels see rises in blood pressure, suppression of the immune system and increased sugar production, he told the show.
與此同時，高度緊張感會使血壓升高，免疫系統受抑制，血糖水平上升。

It's only to be expected that mood swings - and arguments - may ensue.
可以預料，情緒波動和爭吵會隨之而來。

It's perhaps no surprise, then, that close to 70 per cent of Americans say they are fatigued by Christmas, says the American Psychological Association.
這樣看來，美國心理協會稱有近七成美國人在聖誕期間感到身心疲憊就不足爲奇了。

Some comfort, though, can be taken in another finding by the American Psychological Association, as cited by GMA, that almost 80 per cent of Americans feel positive and happy around the holidays.
令人欣慰的是，在早安美國節目所引用的該協會另一項調查中，有近80%的美國人稱他們在節日期間感到快樂。

Rather than let the holiday's excesses defeat and traumatise, the secret is to make the most of your companions, family and friends over the period, suggests Dr Lustig.
勒斯蒂格博士建議，想要遠離節日的挫敗和失落感，祕訣是與朋友和家人一起過聖誕。

'Happiness has nothing to do with money. It has nothing to do with food,' he told the show's site.
“快樂與金錢無關。快樂與食物無關。”

'The best is to have a community and to be happy with what you've got.'
“重要的是和大家一起，並能知足常樂。”