这是一项令人吃惊的结论，但调查结果确实显示：由于社会压力和不良生活习惯的影响，我国已婚人群中不孕不育的比例达到了7%至10%，不孕不育的现象呈增长趋势。专家认为，女性过度晚婚晚育和频繁人工流产是导致不孕不育以及自然流产的原因之一。

请看新华网相关报道：The world's most populous nation is suffering lower fertility rates with up to 10 percent of Chinese couples unable to conceive because of stress and unhealthy lifestyles.

Delaying childbirth until after a woman turns 35 and multiple abortions are often to blame for infertility andmiscarriages. In addition, male infertility was also on the rise in China, with sperm counts decreasing from an average 100 million per ml in the 1970s to 40 million per ml today.

报道中的“miscarriage”指的是“自然流产”，也可写做“spontaneous abortion”。

广义而言，常用词汇“abortion”可泛指任何形式的“流产”，但与“miscarriage”相比，“abortion”更侧重指“induced abortion”（人工流产/堕胎）。

此外，“miscarriage”常和动词“have”搭配，如：A high caffeine intake could increase the odds of having a miscarriage.（摄入大量咖啡因可能会增加流产的几率。）或者，这句话也可用“miscarriage”相应的动词形式“miscarry”来表达，如：Mothers-to-be with a high caffeine intake are more likely to miscarry.

值得一提的是，日常生活中，“miscarriage”常用来形容“（计划/希望）失败、落空”；“（案件）误判”；“（信件/货物）误送、未送达目的地”。看几个例子：a miscarriage of justice（误判）、a miscarriage of a plan（计划落空）、a miscarriage of freight（货物未送达货主）。

（英语点津陈蓓编辑）