That a lack of wealth all too often translates into poor health may seem painfully obvious. But now a review of health inequalit

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问题     That a lack of wealth all too often translates into poor health may seem painfully obvious. But now a review of health inequalities in England reveals that such inequalities don’t just disadvantage the least well-off. The review also suggests some strategies to tackle the inequalities. These remedies should apply the world over, including in the US, where health and wealth inequalities can be especially severe.
    Commissioned by the UK government, the review was headed by Michael Marmot of University College London. Marmot, in his latest work, uses census data from across England to show that these health inequalities don’t just exist between the richest and the poorest. He says action to reduce health inequalities should take place right across society, not focus solely on the poor. "It’s not rich versus poor, because it’s a social grade," he says. What’s more, the most productive time to intervene to create a healthier society is childhood, Marmot says. That children who start out with well-off, well-educated parents are likely to be healthier would seem to be something of a no-brainer. But the fates of 17,200 UK babies monitored since they were born in the same week in April 1970, and highlighted in Marmot’s review, make compelling evidence.
    It turns out that babies who had low IQs at 22 months and were born to richer, better educated parents caught up by the age of 6 with children who started with high IQs but whose parents were poorer and less educated. "It shows that the social is exceeding the biological," says Marmot. "We can change that, and that’s why I’m optimistic." He also finds that children in poorer families miss out on pre-school reading, socialising and physical exercise. This disadvantage leaves them trailing far behind when they start school and they seldom recover.
    Such inequalities are not confined to the UK. A US report in April 2009 concluded that interventions most likely to improve the health of all Americans were "programs that promote early childhood development and that support children and families". A report from Brazil recommended prioritising "actions related to health promotion of children and adolescents". "We look forward to assessing how to adapt the policy recommendations for England to the rest of the world," says Riidiger Krech, director of the WHO’s department of ethics, equity, trade and human rights. He agrees that giving every child the best start in life "is critical in setting the foundation for a lifetime of health and successful contribution to society".
    What can be done to ensure this? One option is to extend maternity or paternity leave. Another is to help struggling parents by providing extra services and information.
To guarantee every child the best start, it’s advisable to ________.

选项 A、extend women’s pregnancy
B、make fathers bring up children
C、give disadvantaged parents more help
D、inform parents of the inequalities

答案C

解析 题干中提到的every child the best start出现在第四段的末句,这是Riidiger Krech的观点,他强调了给每个小孩最好的起点的重要意义(is critical),而第五段则以“What…to ensure this?”为开头,提出了确保这一点的方式。其中第五段第三句提到的另一个方式是帮助艰难挣扎的父母(help struggling parents),C项“给予贫穷父母更多帮助”与此对应,故C项正确。文章第五段一共给了两条建议来确保每个小孩都有个良好开端,第二句的One option指出“延长产假或陪产假”,A项将paternity leave理解成怀孕期,故错误。文中并没有提父亲养育孩子更好,故B项错误。本文不是给家长的指南或警示,而且第五段提到的两个建议里也没有提到D项。所以排除D项。
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