In some countries the average weight of people is increasing and their levels of health and fitness are decreasing. What do you think are the causes of these problems and what measures could be taken to solve them?
This essay question is from Cambridge IELTS 8 Test 4 Writing Task 2.
Task Response
Please note that the question uses the plural “these problems”: What are the causes of these problems? There are actually three problems in question:
Gaining weight doesn’t necessarily mean that you become less fit. For example, you do weight training every day, and it’s helping you gain weight and become fitter. However, being physically fit doesn’t mean that you’re healthy. Health is the absence of disease. A fit person can have undetected cancer, in which case he or she is not healthy. Make sure you explain the causes of all three problems in question.
Sample Essay
In some countries, the average weight of people is rising, which, I believe, is because eating healthy is too expensive in these countries. Their health and fitness conditions are also becoming worse. I think this is mainly due to the weight they gain. To solve these problems, governments should place a high tax on junk food and meanwhile make healthy food affordable.
Junk food is much cheaper than healthy food. Fresh fruits and vegetables are more expensive to farm than crops that will be processed because they rely on human labor rather than machines. For example, fresh strawberries have to be picked by hand whereas strawberries destined for preserves can be harvested by a machine since bumps and bruises do not matter in the process, and machines are much cheaper in the long run. This makes many people dependent on cheap, unhealthy food to fill their stomachs. Since it is generally high in calories, they easily gain weight as they eat more of it.
Their weight gain, in turn, has a negative effect on their fitness since what they gain is fat, not muscle. Even worse, once they become overweight, they will be prone to obesity-related health problems such as heart disease and diabetes.
To solve these problems, junk food should be heavily taxed. Since low prices are the main reason why many people consume it regularly, a high tax could effectively discourage them from doing so. Healthy food should also be made affordable and governments can help by giving subsidies to farmers whose produce will be sold fresh.
In conclusion, the low price of junk food and the high price of healthy food are the main reasons why in some countries people are becoming heavier. The weight they gain then negatively affects their health and fitness. To address these issues, healthy food should be sold at affordable prices and Junk food should be subjected to high taxes. (318 words)
8 CommentsLeave A Comment
Mam, as you said, three are three problems mentioned in this question. Does that mean I have to write three causes and three solutions for these three problems?
Yes, you need to write three causes. My second paragraph is about the cause of weight gain and my third paragraph is about the cause of a decrease in fitness and the cause of a decrease in health. However, you don’t need to write three solutions because one solution may be able to solve all three problems. That said, you do need to provide more than one solution because the question uses the plural “measures”.
Hiiii,in the question it said what are the (causes ) i think mentioning just one cause is wrong ,isn’t it?
Hi, thanks for your question. Yes but I do provide two reasons. Note that the question says the causes of THESE problems. The second paragraph is about the reason why the average weight of people is increasing. The third paragraph is about the reason why their levels of health and fitness are decreasing. Hope this helps.
Hi Lilie, I liked the analysis of the question! Missed that completely because I only focused on one aspect and elaborated on just that!!
I made that mistake in the first place too.
All the essays are u given to ur website, which mean everything are band 7?
Hi, essays on this site were all improved by native speakers so they are far better than what I wrote on actual exams. I think they deserve at least an 8.