THE first initial of your name could dictate how long you live, scientists say.

科学家称，名字的首字母暗示着一个人的寿命。

Psychology experts reckon people whose first name begins with A outlive by 10 years those whose initial is D.

心理学专家统计发现，名字首字母为A的人要比首字母为D的人多活10年。

That is good news for Ant McPartlin, 34 – but bad news for his TV sidekick Declan Donnelly, also 34.

这对34的演员Ant McPartlin来说是个好消息，不过对他同样34岁的的荧屏密友Declan Donnelly来说，就不那么妙了。

They claim it stems from school grades, where A spells success and D failure.

心理学家认为这是因为在学业成绩中，A代表成功，D代表失败。

People whose initial is a D are more likely to have low self-esteem, which is linked to cancer and other illnesses, according to academics at Wayne State University in Detroit, America.

美国底特律的韦恩州立大学的研究者称，名字以D开头的人们往往更加缺乏自信，从而容易患癌症或其他疾病。

They found those whose first name began with D also had shorter lives than those whose names began with E to Z.

他们还发现，名字以D为首字母的人们的平均寿命比首字母E到Z的人都要短。

Dr David Holmes, from Manchester Metropolitan University, said: “This study suggests names have more of an impact than we’ve ever given them credit for.”

曼彻斯特城市大学的David Holmes博士称，“这项研究说明名字比我们认为的更有用处。”

Celebrities who could be affected include David Bowie, 62, David Beckham, 34, Davina McCall, 42, and Dannii Minogue, 38.

根据这一研究，寿命可能要受到影响的名人有62岁的David Bowie，34岁的David Beckham，42岁的Davina McCall和38岁的Dannii Minogue。