最近世界各地做了不少关于新冠肺炎的研究，但是巴黎的一项新研究成功引起了法国政府的注意，并迫使法国政府下令禁止在网上销售尼古丁替代品。这到底是一项什么样的研究呢？

France on Friday banned online sales of nicotine replacements — such as nicotine gum and patches — after a widely reported Paris study found smokers were less likely to admitted to hospital for COVID-19.

法国于4月24日禁止网上销售尼古丁胶姆糖和尼古丁贴片等尼古丁替代品。此前，巴黎有一项研究被广泛报道，该研究指出吸烟者因感染新冠病毒住院的可能性更低。

In a draft legal text published last week, the government warned there could be a run on nicotine replacements thanks to the study. Pharmacies dispensing treatments for tobacco addiction must limit the amount they issue to an individual patient to a single month's supply.

在上周发布的法律草案中，法国政府警告称，受这项研究影响，国内可能会掀起一阵抢购尼古丁替代品的热潮。配发烟瘾治疗药物的药房给个人患者开出的药量不能超过一个月的剂量。

The text states: "Because of media coverage around the possible protective action of nicotine against Covid-19, there is a strong risk that the dispensing in pharmacies and internet sales of nicotine replacements will experience a surge in the coming days."

草案中写道：“由于媒体对于尼古丁对新冠肺炎可能有防护作用的报道，药房和网店配售的尼古丁替代品在未来一段时间极有可能会遭遇抢购风潮。”

The government said the ban would stop people from rushing out and potentially over-consuming nicotine substitutes, as well as ensure a steady supply for patients genuinely being treated for smoking addiction.

法国政府称，该禁令将阻止人们抢购并摄入过量尼古丁替代品，同时也能确保尼古丁替代品可以稳定供应给真正在治疗烟瘾的患者。

The decree comes after a Paris hospital study found that the infection rate for smokers among COVID-19 patients was lower than non-smokers. The study factored in around 480 patients at the Pitié-Salpêtrière hospital. French researchers now plan to hand out nicotine patches to COVID-19 patients and frontline health workers to explore the theory further.

在发布这一法令前，巴黎的一项医院研究发现吸烟者感染新冠肺炎的几率低于非吸烟者。该研究涵盖了皮提耶-萨勒佩特里医院的约480名患者。为了进一步探索这一理论，法国研究人员现在计划向新冠肺炎患者和一线的医疗工作者发放尼古丁贴片。

According to Jean-Pierre Changeux from France's Pasteur Institut, a co-author of the study, the theory is that nicotine may adhere to cell receptors, thus blocking the virus from entering people's cells.

该研究的合著者、法国巴斯德研究所的让-皮埃尔·昌格斯表示，他们的理论是，尼古丁可能会附着在细胞受体上，从而阻断病毒进入人体细胞。

Still, the researchers warned of the dangers of nicotine in their study, and that smoking remains extremely dangerous for your health.

尽管如此，研究人员还是在研究报告中警告尼古丁有危险，指出吸烟对健康依然极其有害。

And overall, the research on smoking and nicotine's impacts on COVID-19 patients is nascent. Scientific American notes there's a considerable body of research to show that smoking reduces lung function and increases flu risk. And a study in the New England Journal of Medicine suggested Chinese smokers who contracted COVID-19 were more likely to get severe infections. An overview of the current studies on the link between COVID-19 and smoking suggested that COVID-19 patients who smoked were more likely to be admitted to intensive care.

总体来看，这项关于吸烟和尼古丁对新冠肺炎患者作用的研究还处在初级阶段。《科学美国人》指出，大量的研究表明，吸烟会降低肺功能，增加患上流感的风险。《新英格兰医学期刊》的一项研究指出，在中国，感染新冠肺炎的吸烟者更可能会转成重症。一份关于新冠肺炎和吸烟之间联系的当前研究综述指出，吸烟的新冠肺炎患者更可能住进重症监护室。

nascent [ˈneɪsnt]: adj. 新兴的，初期的