Level 6 - Unit 2 - Part 4 Listening - Aging Population（人口老龄化）

The world’s population is growing at a rate of a little more than 1% per year. However, not all segments of the population are growing at the same rate. This graph shows that the rates of growth have 3 different groups, children, adults and the elderly. As you can see, while the population of children is fairly constant, the elderly population is increasing at the fastest rate. This is due to very low birth rates in developed country and birthrate declines in most developing countries. As a result of these trends, the world’s population is aging.
世界人口每年的增长速度略高于1%，然而，并不是所有的人口群体增长速度相同。这张图显示了三个不同的群体，儿童，成人和老年人的增长速度，如你所见，儿童人口相当稳定，老年人口增长速度最快。这是因为发达国家的出生率低，大多数发展中国家的出生率在下降，因为这些趋势，世界人口正在老龄化。

Between 2015 and 2050, the percentage of world’s population over 60 is expected to nearly double. In 2015 there were 900 million people over 60; in 2050 the number should be around 2 billion. Aging populations are becoming a huge problem in many countries, especially developing counties. It used to be that many elderly people lived with their family and helped take care of the next generation. They had a place to stay and people to help take care of them when they needed assistance. Now however, many elderly people, or senior citizens, are left on their own. This is partly the result of people having fewer children, and also because of the massive urbanization. Young and middle-aged adults have left the rural areas for economic opportunities only available in large urban centers. As a result, there is no one to care for the elderly who are left behind to live on their own. This is especially true in developing countries.
从2015年到2050年，世界60岁以上人口的比例预计将增加近一倍。2015年，60岁以上的人口有9亿；到2050年，这个数字应该在20亿左右，人口老龄化已成为许多国家，特别是发展中国家的一个重大问题。过去，很多老年人和家人住在一起，帮助照顾下一代。当他们需要帮助时，他们有地方住，有人帮助照顾他们，然而现在许多老年人只能靠自己了。这在一定程度上是因为人们的孩子越来越少，也因为大规模的城市化。年轻人和中年人离开农村，去寻找只有大城市中心才有的经济机会。结果，老年人无人照顾，只能自食其力，发展中国家尤其如此。

With an aging population, health problems become a growing concern. Some of the leading conditions that accompany aging include vision problems, hearing loss, diabetes and dementias such as Alzheimer's disease. These problems can lead to disabilities that make it difficult to live without assistance. With diseases such as Alzheimer's, people lose their memory and are unable to recognize their own children. Worldwide, more than 46% of people aged 60 and over have disabilities. Getting meals and medical care, for example, becomes both expensive and difficult. As a result, the cost of providing services to the sick and disabled can become a huge problem.
随着人口老龄化，健康问题日益受到关注。伴随老龄化的一些主要疾病包括视力问题、听力损失、糖尿病和精神疾病，如老年痴呆症。这些问题可能导致残疾，使得没有援助很难生活。患有老年痴呆的人们会失去记忆，无法识别自己的孩子。在世界范围内，超过46%的60岁以上老人有残疾。举个例子，获得食物和医疗护理既昂贵又困难，因此，为病人和残疾人提供服务的费用可能成为一个巨大的问题。