if you want to learn how to live longer, look at the people of okinawa, a string of islands in south-western japan. raised on a diet of fish and soyabeans, their life expectancy is among the highest on earth. there is a natural control group; many okinawans fled to brazil and hawaii after the second world war, where they switched to a meatier diet of steaks and burgers. all have been studied regularly by japanese researchers over the past three decades to prove that a soya-rich diet can prolong life. now it is time for the taste test: can a healthy bag of soya nibbles sweep the fatty potato snack off the table?
你若想学会延年益寿，就看看日本西南部冲绳诸岛（okinawa）上的居民吧。吃鱼和大豆长大的他们是世界上寿命最长的人。有一组人形成了天然对照组（见译注1），他们是二战之后逃往巴西和夏威夷的冲绳人在那里他们变得更爱吃肉，比如牛排和汉堡。日本专家在过去30年里对他们进行定期研究，(研究)证明富含大豆成分的饮食能延长寿命。现在是时候进行口味测试了：健康大豆食品能否横扫桌上富含高脂的土豆小吃？
kaoru yamada, a young food specialist at otsuka pharmaecutical, a japanese drug company, has risen to the challenge. she dislikes the taste of soya, so she invented a lightly baked soya pastry that tastes of cheese, is crispy, has soyabeans rattling inside it and can sit on a desk—or even on a bar—for months without going soggy. called soycarat, her creation went on sale in japan this month. otsuka, which also produces a big-selling health drink called pocari sweat, sees it as part of a counter-offensive against western snacks that are making asians fatter.
日本大冢（otsuka）制药厂食品专家、年轻的山田薰（kaoru yamada）已经迎接一项挑战。她因为不喜欢大豆的味道，所以发明了一种乳酪味大豆点心，里面有脆脆的大豆，口感香脆。点心可以放在桌上——甚至在柜台上——几个月都不会受潮。她的这个发明叫soycarat，本月在日本开始出售。大冢公司把它的销售看作是抵制西方食品（它们使亚洲人变得肥胖）行为的一部分。该公司还生产了一种叫宝矿力（pocari sweat）保健饮料的热销产品。
the science is compelling: research, albeit part-sponsored by otsuka, suggests that eating soya protein quickly lowers blood pressure, reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease. the company notes that the average american eats less soya in a year than the average japanese eats in a day. otsuka is not alone in japan in trying to use science to sell consumer products: for instance, uniqlo, a clothes retailer, sells hi-tech underwear that it says makes sweat dry quicker.
科学研究是具有说服力的：一项由大冢制药给予部分赞助的研究显示，食用大豆蛋白能够快速降压，降低患心血管疾病的风险。该公司还指出美国人每年人均食用大豆量少于日本人日均食用量。大冢制药不是日本惟一一家试图利用科学研究向顾客出售产品的商家：例如，服装零售商优衣库（uniqlo）就在出售一种据说能让汗水干得更快的高科技内衣。
but the marketing may be a problem. sophisticated diners insist that soya is scrumptious, but others vehemently disagree. gary larson, a cartoonist, once drew three disgusted lionesses spitting out the wobbly flesh of “a tofudebeest—one of the serengeti’s obnoxious health antelopes”. it struck a chord.
不过该产品在市场营销上可能会遇到问题。食家坚持说大豆很美味，可是其他人却强烈反对。漫画家加里•拉尔森（gary larson）曾画过3头母狮厌恶地吐出嘴里摇摇晃晃的豆腐块状肉 ——一种塞伦盖蒂（见译注2）的养生却令人作呕的羚羊肉/ 塞伦盖蒂最令人作呕的健康羚羊——豆腐羚。这引起了人们的共鸣。
soycarat’s brand name is tricky: whatever the spelling, it evokes the idea of two things children shun and adults munch only reluctantly. perhaps it should be portrayed as something laid back and okinawan instead, like a bar snack. after all, what could be better than a life-enhancing glass of orion beer in one hand, and a life-extending bag of soya snacks in the other?
soycarat这个品牌名本身就很复杂——无论怎么拼写soy和carat，听上去总会让人想起“黄豆（soy）”和“胡萝卜（carrot）”这两种小孩避而远之，大人勉强食之的东西。或许应该将它描述成具有冲绳风情，在酒吧吃的那种休闲小零食。毕竟，左手一杯提高生活质量的orion啤酒（见译注3），右手一袋延年益寿的大豆点心，还有什么能比这个赛过活神仙呢？