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Inviting Grandma over for dinner may actually extend her life - and increase its quality - a new study shows.
一项新研究表明，邀请奶奶过来吃晚饭可能会延长她的寿命，并提高她的生活质量。
Researchers at the University of California, San Francisco found that loneliness plays a large role in the decline so often associated with old age. The study followed 1,600 adults, with an average age of 71 - despite controlling for socioeconomic status and health, the lonely consistently held higher mortality rates. Nearly 23% of lonely participants died within six years of the study, as opposed to only 14% of those that reported adequate companionship.
旧金山加利福尼亚大学的研究员们发现：孤独在与老年人相关的衰老中扮演重要角色。该研究对1600名成年人进行了调查——平均年龄为71岁——尽管控制了社会经济状态和健康，孤独参试者的死亡率始终较高。近23%的孤独参试者在研究开展的6年内离世，而报告称只有14%的人享有足够多的陪伴。
"The need we've had our entire lives - people who know us, value us, who bring us joy - that never goes away," Barbara Moscowitz, senior geriatric social worker at Massachusetts General Hospital, explained to The New York Times.
“我们一生都会有这样的需要——希望那些了解我们、尊重我们、给我们带来欢乐的人永远不会离开，”芭芭拉•莫斯科维茨在接受《纽约时报》的采访时说道。她是马萨诸塞州总医院的高级老年社会工作者。
The elderly place great value in those relationships, so much so that they often overlook a great deal more than their children or even their grandchildren do. It comes down to important relational skills, Rosemary Blieszner, a professor of human development at Virginia Tech, told The New York Times - skills that our grandparents have had a lifetime to hone.
老年人对这些关系十分重视，以至于他们盼望自己的孩子甚至是孙子/女比儿子辈或孙子辈盼望他们要多得多。说到底，就是重要的关系技能，弗吉尼亚理工大学人类发展学教授罗斯玛丽•布利兹纳在接受《纽约时报》采访时说道——也就是祖父/母一辈子都在磨炼的技能。
"They're pretty tolerant of friends' imperfections and idiosyncrasies, more than young adults," she said. "You bring a lot more experience to your friendships when you're older. You know what's worth fighting about and not worth fighting about."
“相比年轻的成年人，他们对朋友的缺陷和癖好更能容忍，”她说道。“年老时，你会给自己的朋友带来更多体验。你知道什么值得争取，什么不值得争取。”
Beyond inviting our older relatives and friends into our homes, it's important to encourage elderly relationships - which is why, despite popular belief, older folks tend to thrive in independent or assisted living environments. These living arrangements provide more ways to mingle, to connect, to thrive.
除了邀请上了岁数的亲戚和朋友来家里叙旧，鼓励老年人相互建立友谊也很重要——撇开普通人的想法，这就是为什么老年人往往会在独立或有帮助的生存环境中活的开心的原因。因为这些生活安排为他们提供更多的方式去社交、接触、繁荣。
Spending quality time with Grandma and Grandpa helps them, but it benefits us, as well - the symbiotic relationship is undeniable. They get the companionship and conversation so crucial to every day life, and we get their stories, their hugs and, best of all, those famous, secret recipe cookies.
与祖父祖母一起度过美好时光既能帮助他们，又能使我们受益匪浅，同时——共生关系是不可否认的。他们得到了对日常生活至关重要的陪伴和交流，我们则获得了他们的故事、拥抱、最棒的是还能得到那些好吃饼干的秘方。
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