English Vocabulary in Use Upper-intermediate » Unit 30: Health and lifestyle

Word List
  • ageing
  • boost
  • cholesterol
  • consider
  • consume
  • content n
  • depression
  • exercise n, v
  • fat
  • fit
  • fitness
  • fizzy
  • good for
  • harm
  • harmful
  • immune system
  • large quantities
  • level
  • list
  • long-term
  • lower
  • maintain
  • major
  • mental
  • nuts
  • obese
  • obesity
  • physical
  • process
  • processed
  • quantity
  • reduce
  • rise
  • risk
  • sharp
  • short-term
  • slow
  • source
  • superfood
  • terminal
  • vitamin
  • wholemeal
  • yacht
Exercises

30.1 ‣ Rewrite the words in bold using words from A opposite.

  1. If people eat these foods in big amounts , it may be dangerous.
  2. Certain foods are thought _____ by scientists to have a positive effect on _____ our bodies.
  3. Foods with a lot of fat in them _____ may cause health problems.
  4. Some foods may cause _____ health problems that last long into the future.

30.2 ‣ Match the adjectives and nouns to make five collocations to fill the gaps in the sentences below.

adjectivesnouns
oily      processed      wholemeal      mental      fizzydrinks      bread      fish      health      foods

  1. is usually considered to be healthy because it contains the complete grain, with nothing taken out.
  2. _____ may taste good when you're very thirsty, but they often have a high sugar content.
  3. Types of _____ include salmon.
  4. _____ often contain artificial colours to make them look more attractive.
  5. Some foods can be good for our _____ as well as our bodies.

30.3 ‣ Verb-noun collocations. Match the sentence beginnings on the left with the endings on the right.

  1. Certain foods can slow
  2. Some foods can boost _____
  3. Some foods can lower _____
  4. Other foods can reduce _____
  1. a) cholesterol.
  2. b) the risk of heart disease.
  3. c) the immune system.
  4. d) the ageing process.

30.4 ‣ Can you remember which positive effect each of these foods may have? Choose your answers from 29.3 (a-d).

  1. spinach
  2. vegetable juice _____
  3. apples _____
  4. blueberries _____
  1. a) cholesterol.
  2. b) the risk of heart disease.
  3. c) the immune system.
  4. d) the ageing process.

30.5 ‣ Correct the mistakes in these sentences. There may be more than one.

  1. Blueberries can improve short-time memory.
  2. Many fruits are a good sauce of vitamin C and provide mayor health benefits.
    _____
  3. Oily fishes should form part of a healthy diet.
    _____
  4. Which do you prefer to eat as a snack if you're hungry, fruits or nuts?
    _____
  5. A: There's a new Chinese restaurant in town. B: Good! I love Chinese foods.
    _____
  6. There has been a sharp raise in the number of people suffering from depresion.
    _____

30.6 ‣ Complete the two versions of each sentence. Use related word forms, as in the example.

  1. Tobacco and alcohol can cause a lot of / can be to our health.
  2. Children who are _____ / who suffer from _____ need to exercise more.
  3. Her job is very / causes her a lot of _____ and is very tiring.
  4. How can we keep _____ / maintain a good level of _____? The answer is to get regular _____ / to _____ regularly.

30.7 ‣

Over to you

List the foods that you eat most regularly. How many are (a) healthy (b) not so healthy? Do you consume any superfoods? Why? Why not?
Answer Key
A ‣ Diet

Some types of food are considered to be good for our health. Others can cause long-term1 health problems if they are consumed2 in large quantities. Here are some examples.

healthy ...not so healthy ...
oily fish (e.g. salmon)sugary foods (e.g. fizzy3 drinks)
fruit and nuts4food with a high fat or high salt content5
wholemeal6 breadprocessed7 food

1 lasting a long time into the future
2 eaten (fml)
3 with a lot of bubbles
4 dry fruits of some trees with a hard shell
5 amount that is in the food
6 containing all the grain, with nothing taken out
7 treated with chemicals to preserve the food or to add taste or colour

Some foods are considered to be superfoods - foods that may prevent diseases and improve mental1as well as physical2 health. Foods that are often listed as superfoods include:
• Blueberries: may improve short-term3 memory and slow4 the ageing process5.
• Apples: a good source6 of vitamin C; they can also lower7 cholesterol.
• Spinach: high in vitamin A; it can boost8 the immune system.
• Vegetable juice (especially tomato): can reduce the risk9 of heart disease.

1 of the mind
2 of the body
3 lasting a short time
4 make it happen more slowly
5 the changes to our body and mind by which we grow old
6 the place it comes from
7 reduce/take the level down
8 improve or increase
9 make less likely that it will happen

B ‣ Lifestyle

Read the magazine extracts about lifestyle issues. Note the use of the adjective and noun forms of the same word.

There has been a sharp rise1 in the number of children who are obese2. Childhood obesity is now a major3 problem. Children often take too little exercise.

People often do not realise how stressful their jobs are. Stress can cause high blood pressure, increased risk of heart attacks and depression4.

Keeping fit need not be difficult. You can maintain5 a good level of fitness with a simple routine of daily exercise. Start exercising now!

Bad habits can cause serious harm6 to the body. Alcohol and tobacco are particularly harmful if consumed in large quantities over a long period.

1 an increase that is sudden and quick
2 extremely fat
3 very big and serious
4 a mental illness when someone is extremely unhappy and anxious for a long period
5 keep (fml)
6 injury or damage

Language help

The nouns food and fruit can be both uncountable and countable. When we refer to food and fruit in general we use the uncountable form (e.g. That restaurant serves good food / I love fruit). The plural forms, foods/fruits, are used to refer to individual types or examples of food (e.g. fatty foods, citrus fruits). We always use fish in the singular.

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