Depression (抑郁症) is a serious problem today.Depression causes workers to be unproductive，causing companies and countries to lose billions of dollars.One expert says that depression is like cancer because it is “widespread，costly and deadly”．Depression hits one person in five around the world.
Although people have believed depression to be a problem among the rich and educated，studies show that depression is a problem among everyone.Over any sixmonth period，between five to seven percent of the world’s population will be suffering from a serious depression.Suicide rates among people suffering from the disease in its extreme，or clinical form were 80 percent higher than in the population at large，and sufferers were four times more likely to have heart attacks.People who suffer from depression often have problems sleeping，getting up on time，and doing work productively.
Depression，which researchers agree has its origin in the genes，brings loss of confidence and ability to concentrate—making it impossible for employees and managers to work efficiently.
Depression is made more serious in China by Chinese’s inability to face it.Many people believe that depressed people are either weak or lazy.Besides，there is no good treatment，with few specialists available.“Most patients in China just don’t get help，”a Chinese doctor says.“In my hospital，I have to see 30 or 40 patients in a morning，just have time to say ‘Hello，how do you feel？’”
In Western countries，people are not afraid to admit that they have depression，but most do not tell it to their boss，because they fear that they will be stricken_off_the_rolls.“In my experience，aging bosses are the most willing to admit they have it.Because they feel the most secure about themselves，” an American doctor says.
Hopefully，in the near future，people around the world will be able to admit that they have depression so that they can get the right treatment.
小题1:Which of the following is true according to the passage?
A．It is widely believed that everyone may suffer from depression.
B．Depression brings great problems to its sufferers in their life and work.
C．Depression is a commonlyexisting problem only in rich countries.
D．The poorer and the less educated a person is，the less he will suffer from depression.小题2:．Compared to normal people，the depressed people are likely to be________.
A．very unconfident and often absentminded
B．easy to avoid being hit by heart attacks
C．working efficiently and productively
D．either weak or lazy小题3:Depression becomes more serious in China because of________.
A．the understanding of the problem
B．the lack of treatment and doctors
C．their unwillingness to tell it to their boss
D．the doctors’ careless work小题4:What can we infer from the passage?
A．People are suffering from depression because of the shortage of specialists.
B．The aging bosses around the world dare to say they are depressed.
C．More and more patients will turn to specialists for help.
D．Western people are braver than Chinese people.小题5:What does the underlined words in the 5th paragraph mean?
A．Hired.
B．Dismissed.
C．Promoted.
D．Recommended.
