Cue Card Talk about a magazine or online article about healthy living
IELTS Cue Card Talk about a magazine or online article about healthy living
Talk about a magazine or online article about healthy living
You should say
- Who writes the magazine/Article?
- Where do you get this magazine/Article?
- What the magazine/Article says about healthy living?
And explain why you agree/ disagree with the message.
Sample Answer
Media has a pivotal role in shaping our worldview. Every single thing we know is through the spread of print, online sites and our school system. Our opinions are largely formed from these sources. In fact, some infamous marketing campaigns have been so successful in imparting their opinions that they have shaped unhealthy, illogical now unquestionably integral habits of our society.
Take the weekend magazine that comes attached to our morning newspaper for example. Every single Sunday I am barraged by articles on “Healthy Living!!”, “Newest Fads!!”, “New Study!!” claiming things from the absurd to the plain manipulative and wrong. When reading these articles, I wonder for the sanity of those less fortunate than I, for those less aware and more trusting, for those that take anything written as proof of its factuality.
These articles are written by mere journalists with no license, no qualification, to talk on the trends they seem to swear by. Fad diets are ruthlessly promoted, real health experts willingly misquoted. Studies that should not even be allowed to see the light of day get prime spots just because of their outrageous claims. Those studies that have a sample pool of 5 people followed over 3 days diets that apparently worked miracles get the glory of the cover page. It makes me furious.
The magazine promotes itself as a health capsule and does in fact the devil’s bidding. Promoting processed food one day, Vitamin supplements the next, and organic companies the week after. It’s a blatant advertisement for companies bidding for the best article spots. Absolutely revolting, that people would even fall for this in their desperate times. Please do not even get me started on the fad diet section this magazine displays so proudly.
The Journalist rely so heavily on wispy claims by experts with no knowledge on how to verify the reports or see flaws in the expert’s work. The publishers are unaware of their own reach, rather than promoting critical thinking of the general population they prefer to use consumerism culture to rake in the money. Newspapers devote little to no space to in depth nutrition, despite having all the resources available. It’s purely frustrating to me, and also one of my biggest pet peeves.
Last week I really felt like writing to the publication house to complain, they should at least add a disclaimer box on any speculation rather than presenting it next to factual news. But then I realized it would be a waste of time, rather I made another phone call, a different one, one to cancel my mandatory subscription to those glossy misleading pages.
Follow-up questions::
Q.1 How popular is reading in your country?
Ans: I’m glad to say that love for reading is still alive in my country. In fact, reading is so popular that each town in my state has a fully equipped library. People of all ages, including children, adults and the elderly, throng to these libraries regularly to enjoy their favourite publications.
Q.2 Do you think reading is important?
Ans: Yes, indeed. In my view, reading has a profound effect on human behaviour and personality development. It not only helps us grow mentally, emotionally and psychologically but also broadens our horizons and shapes our characters.
Q.3 Do you think men and women prefer different types of books?
Ans: Yes, generally speaking, male readers are more inclined towards non-fiction books whereas females enjoy fiction and fantasy based reading.
| Useful words and their meanings | |
| Worldview | a particular philosophy of life or conception of the world |
| Fad | a style, activity, or interest that is very popular for a short period of time |
| Blatant | (of bad behaviour) done openly and unashamedly. |
| Peeve | a cause of annoyance |
Another Similar Cue Card
Talk about an article about health which you felt interesting to read.
You should say:
- Where and when did you read it?
- What was the article about?
And why did you feel it interesting?
(Download CUE Card)
SAMPLE ANSWER TWO:
Health is the most crucial element of our well-being. Only by being healthy can we enjoy all other worldly pleasures in life. Poor health is a curse which decapitates the joy of life. Importance of good health and its guidelines are impressed upon us by our parents and teachers in our childhood. Later, we come across various literature and social messages inking the techniques used to attain good health. One such health article that I came across, was published in the Sunday magazine ‘Health Plus’, that was subscribed by my parents. It was during the summers of last year that I read this article.
The article detailed out the causes and preventive measures of lifestyle diseases like hypertension, diabetes, stress and anxiety disorders etc., which are becoming commonplace nowadays. Medical cases related to these disorders are on a high tide rise, due to the increasing work pressures and emotional dissatisfactions. It mentioned that although we have allopathic treatment of these diseases but, they come as an addiction and consequential harmful effects to the body. Yoga and Naturopathy were suggested as the best alternatives, whose results might be slow to appear, but they are permanent with no side effects. Different yoga postures and techniques have been verified to be highly useful in preventing and curing these lifestyle disorders. Moreover, there are several herbs and medicinal plants which could be consumed instead of allopathic medicines, as medicines reduce in their effectiveness over a period of time due to the immunity built against antibiotics.
Evidential results along with testimonies of different people inspired my faith in effectiveness of natural techniques. I affirmed the strong importance of yoga and naturopathy for staying fit and healthy. Apart from that, I felt good to know various yoga techniques and names of plants that can be easily grown in homes. I also developed a firm resistance for medicines, in case of curing lifestyle diseases.
STRONG WORDS
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Hypertension | high blood pressure: Hypertension can be handled by meditation. |
| Decapitate | cut down: King decapitated the head of the rival soldier. |
Follow-up Questions
Q. 1 Is there a shift in the health patterns of people over the time?
Sample Answer: Yes, there is a visible shift in the health patterns of people. In the past, many years back, although we didn’t have as good health infrastructure as now but then, there were less number of diseases too. Lifestyle diseases were very rare and even chronic diseases like tumours were very few. People were relatively healthy and disease free in earlier times.
Q. 2 As per you, what is the reason of this declining health graph?
Sample Answer: Food and dietary patterns are the foremost reason for this depreciating trend in the health domain. Nowadays, grains, cereals, vegetables and even fruits are grown with the application of lots of fertilizers and pesticides which are extremely detrimental to our health. Apart from that, lack of physical exercises in our daily lifestyle is another reason for this trend. Outdoors junk food consumption is a rising phenomenon in the youngsters nowadays which is a serious compromise on our good health. Needless to say, growing work pressures and fragile relationships present today, take a heavy toll on the psyche and various stress and anxiety related disorders are peaking as a result of it.
Q. 3 What do you do to stay fit and healthy?
Sample Answer: Most of the times I take my food at home only and try to avoid the outdoor junk. Apart from this, I regularly go for jogging and stretching exercises in the morning. Also, I try to stay calm and composed, free of agitation in all situations. With practice, I have developed this tempo of staying relaxed which doesn’t allow the stress to weigh heavily on me.
Q. 4 How do you verify the bonafideness of an article?
Sample Answer: First of all, it is the magazine and its esteemed brand in which the article is published, that matters the most. Good reputed magazines thriving well for the last many years have proven their credibility and established the faith in the minds of its readers. Then the signatory authorship of the article is also considered for the genuineness of the article. Finally, the testimonies and interviews presented in the article act as major supplements to ensure the truth about it.
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