In this post: Eight common health and food questions, the three levels an argument can work at, and logic chains on sugary food, cooking at home versus eating out, food from around the world, sleep and public health.
Health and Food · 3 parts
- 1. Common questions and arguments (you are here)
- 2. Argument checks and breakdowns
- 3. Model, mistakes and practice
✦ In this post
Health and food questions look very down-to-earth, and the arguments seem to come for free: too much sugar is bad, eating out is unhealthy, staying up late harms your body. But when I looked back at my own essays on this topic, I found that the biggest risk is not running out of ideas. It is that an argument sounds reasonable but has holes once you follow it through. For example, in my essay on making sugary products more expensive, I argued that “a lack of sugar threatens mental health”. Task Response still got 8, but a more critical reader could easily challenge that argument.
This post uses three essays I sent for marking as its backbone: should sugary products be made more expensive (7), is cooking at home better than eating out (7), and is it good or bad that supermarkets sell food from all over the world (7.5). I have also added sleep and public health, two directions I never wrote about but which come up often. For vocabulary on social issues, see Topic Vocabulary (Part 2).
1. Eight common health and food questions
| Question (paraphrased) | Common question type | The real point of debate |
|---|---|---|
| Sugary foods should be made more expensive so that people eat less sugar (I wrote this one, Cambridge 16 Test 2) | Agree / Disagree | Price measures vs fairness and effectiveness |
| Cooking and eating at home is better than going to restaurants (I wrote this one) | Agree / Disagree | Health and saving money vs time and social life |
| Supermarkets sell food from all over the world: good or bad? (I wrote this one, Cambridge 19 Test 4) | Positive / Negative | Choice and nutrition vs carbon footprint and local industry |
| Fast food is becoming more common and causing health problems such as obesity: causes and solutions | Two questions | Environment and habits |
| Many people today do not get enough sleep: why, and what are the effects? | Two questions | Work, technology and public health |
| Is personal health the individual’s responsibility or the government’s? | Discuss both views | Personal choice vs public policy |
| Should health budgets be spent on treating illness or preventing it? | Discuss both views | Today’s patients vs long-term costs |
| Schools should ban the sale of junk food | Agree / Disagree | Protecting children vs freedom of choice |
Most health arguments fall into three levels. Ideally, touch on at least two of them, so that your essay does not stop at “is it good for your body or not”:
| Level | The questions it asks | Useful phrases |
|---|---|---|
| Individual | Is it good for your body, your mind, your wallet? | a balanced diet, physical and mental health, save money |
| Family | Time, family relationships, children’s habits | family bonding, busy working parents, eating habits |
| Society | Healthcare spending, productivity, fairness | the burden on the healthcare system, productivity, low-income groups |
2. Argument bank: eight logic chains for health essays
A. Sugary food and price policies
Argument 1 · For higher prices or a tax: price changes buying behaviour, especially among young people
Point → Raising the price of sugary products can effectively reduce consumption, especially among price-sensitive groups.
Explanation → Sugary drinks are usually not necessities, so when the price rises, many people switch to unsweetened tea or water. Young people have limited pocket money and are even more sensitive to price. The tax revenue can also be spent on health education or healthcare, creating a positive cycle.
Example → Hypothetical example: if a bottle of a sugary drink rose from NT$30 to NT$36 (about US$1 to US$1.20), students might switch to cheaper unsweetened tea and drink several fewer bottles a week over time.
Since sugary drinks are not essential, a higher price is likely to persuade many consumers, particularly young people, to choose healthier alternatives.
Argument 2 · Against higher prices: it is unfair to low-income families, and it may not change habits
Point → The burden of higher prices falls on low-income groups, yet it may not truly change eating habits.
Explanation → People on high incomes do not mind paying a little more and keep buying; low-income families spend a larger share of their income on food, so they are forced either to pay more or to cut other spending. If people simply switch to other cheap, high-calorie food, the health problem is not solved either.
Example → This is the all-purpose “unfairness / financial burden” argument I used again and again in my notes, and it fits this question particularly well.
A sugar tax would place a heavier burden on low-income households, who spend a larger share of their income on food, while wealthier consumers would hardly notice the difference.
Argument 3 · A more effective method: education and clear labelling tackle the root cause better than higher prices
Point → Rather than relying on price alone, education and nutrition labels can help people make healthy choices of their own accord.
Explanation → Many people have no idea how much sugar is in a cup of bubble tea or other freshly made drink. If the packaging shows it clearly, or high-sugar products are marked with a colour code, consumers can judge at the moment they buy. Children who learn to read nutrition labels at school are also less likely to develop high-sugar eating habits as adults.
Example → Hypothetical example: a drinks shop lists the sugar content of each drink on its menu, and customers who usually order “full sugar” switch to “less sugar” or “no sugar” once they see it.
Clear nutrition labels and health education allow people to make informed choices, which is likely to change habits more permanently than a price increase.
B. Cooking at home vs eating out, and food from around the world
Argument 4 · For cooking at home: you control the ingredients and seasoning
Point → Cooking at home is healthier, because you can control everything you eat.
Explanation → To make food taste good, restaurants often use more oil, salt and sugar, and customers cannot see where the ingredients come from. Cooking for yourself means you can choose fresh ingredients and control the seasoning, which matters especially for people who need to manage their blood pressure or blood sugar.
Example → In my cooking-at-home essay I wrote that when you cook for yourself you know how much salt, sugar and oil you use, and can avoid ingredients that are bad for your body.
When people cook for themselves, they know exactly how much salt, sugar and oil goes into each meal.
Argument 5 · For eating out: for busy dual-income families, the time saved is worth more
Point → Eating out is not necessarily worse; for families short of time, it is the more practical choice.
Explanation → Shopping, preparing, cooking and washing up can take one or two hours in total. Dual-income families still have to look after their children after work, so spending that time together or resting may do them more good than insisting on cooking. Many restaurants now offer healthy set meals, so eating out can also be balanced.
Example → Hypothetical example: a couple who both work overtime buy healthy lunch boxes on weekdays and cook together at weekends, which keeps their family life in better shape than forcing themselves to cook every day.
For families in which both parents work long hours, the time saved by eating out can be spent resting or with their children.
Argument 6 · Food from around the world (both sides): more choice and more varied nutrition vs transport emissions and local industry
Point → Being able to buy food from all over the world in supermarkets makes diets more varied, but it also has environmental and economic costs.
Explanation → On the positive side, all kinds of fruit and vegetables are available in every season, which helps people eat a balanced diet and get to know other cultures through food. On the negative side, long-distance transport needs fuel and increases carbon emissions, and cheap imported food may squeeze local farmers out of the market.
Example → In my global food essay I took the negative side, writing about greenhouse gas emissions from transport and the threat imported food poses to local industry.
Imported food widens consumers’ choices, but transporting it over long distances increases carbon emissions and may put local farmers out of business.
C. Sleep and public health
Argument 7 · Causes and effects of lack of sleep: long hours plus scrolling before bed affect more than just the individual
Point → People today do not get enough sleep mainly because of long working hours and using electronic devices before bed, and the effects spread to society as a whole.
Explanation → Overtime and commuting eat into rest time, and at home people relax by scrolling on their phones, so they go to bed later and later. Long-term sleep deprivation reduces concentration and raises the risk of mistakes at work and road accidents, which eventually become losses in healthcare and productivity.
Example → Hypothetical example: an engineer sleeps only five hours a night for several weeks, often cannot concentrate in meetings, and makes more and more mistakes in the reports he submits.
Lack of sleep reduces concentration, which not only affects individuals’ performance at work but also increases the risk of accidents on the roads.
Argument 8 · For prevention over cure: prevention costs far less than treatment, and the earlier the better
Point → Governments should spend more of their health budgets on prevention, because it is cheaper than treatment and reduces the burden on the healthcare system.
Explanation → Once chronic diseases such as diabetes and heart disease develop, they require long-term medication and monitoring, which is very expensive. If governments step in early through exercise promotion, health checks and diet education, many illnesses can be delayed or avoided.
Example → Hypothetical example: a community offers free health checks, identifies residents with high blood sugar early and gives them dietary advice, saving a great deal of money compared with treating them after they develop diabetes.
Investing in prevention, such as regular health checks and exercise programmes, is far cheaper than treating chronic diseases once they have developed.
Continue reading · Part 2 of 3
IELTS Notes in English · Topic Guides (post 5 of 10)
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✦ Target Your Future
Some days you practise for hours and the score still does not move. I hope these notes remind you that the setbacks are part of the road: every recording you replayed, every essay you rewrote and every sentence you finally dared to say is progress you have already made.
I wrote this down so the next person can take fewer detours. You do not have to follow my method exactly. Find a rhythm that works for you, rest when you need to, and come back for the next small step.
I hope what you take away is more than a number on a score report: a little more confidence in yourself, and the courage to step a bit closer to the world.
— Ting
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