Free IELTS Lesson about HEALTH Flashcards
Useful Links
Articles about health https://www.healthline.com/health-news
https://familydoctor.org/prevention-and-wellness/ https://health.usnews.com/wellness
IELTS Speaking Topics: Health
Health is a very wide topic and overlaps with other common topics in IELTS Speaking including:
• Keeping fit
• Physical exercise
• Sport
• Mental health
• Disease and sickness
• Medicine
• Health Care
• Food and Nutrition
• Sleep
IELTS Speaking Vocabulary: Health
Health (n.) Healthy (adj.) Healthily (adv.)
Here are some common spoken greetings in British English:
• How are you?
• How are you doing?
• How’s it going?
For close family and friends, a possible follow up question is:
How’s your health?
Possible answers to this question are the following:
• I am in good health
• I’m alive and kicking
• I’m as fit as a fiddle
• I’m perfectly healthy
Likewise talking about other members of your family, you may say,
• She’s enjoying good health
• He is in poor heath
• He looks like death warmed up = looks very sick
If you are feeling very fit and healthy you can say,
• I am fighting fit
• I’m in top form
• I am in great shape
• I’ve never felt better
Common Collocations with Health
We need to look after our mental health
We need to maintain our physical health
Lead a healthy lifestyle
Eat a healthy diet
She is fit and healthy
IELTS Speaking Topic: How do you stay fit and healthy?
I stay in shape by working out
I maintain my health by eating a healthy diet
I keep healthy by taking medicine and taking supplements
By eating a vegetarian diet - a plant-based diet - a vegan diet
I make a point of doing yoga or doing meditation
Mostly by just keeping active
I do my morning walks daily
I make it a point (=to make sure) to hit the gym on a daily basis
IELTS Speaking Topic: Health and Fitness
Lately I have not done any physical activity and I feel totally out of shape.
I used to be fighting fit.
I was a regular down the gym, working out three times a week, like clockwork, but nowadays, I have got out of the habit.
I know it’s important to look after your physical health, as that also affects your mental health, right?
The thing is, I just can’t muster up the energy to do any exercise. I’m in a bit of a rut. (=in a bad situation) Maybe I should join a club or something to get back into shape.
I was thinking about a walking club. Going hiking with a group of people seems like a good idea.
It might motivate me to keep going, I can meet some new friends and I will get lots of fresh air to boot. (= In addition / an added bonus) It sounds like a plan!
IELTS Speaking Topic: Health and Disease
Find some interesting articles about health below.
These will give you lots of ideas to talk about, as well as the language you need to discuss these topics confidently to boot.
Healthline is a research-backed website run by professionals and a good source of health information
https://www.healthline.com/health-news
Family Doctor has articles with advice about everyday family health
https://familydoctor.org/prevention-and-wellness/
Most news websites have a health section like this one, and tend to have articles about topical and trending health subjects, often for easy reading.
https://health.usnews.com/wellness
Phrasal verbs
Here are a number of phrasal verbs that are commonly used to talk about falling ill and recovering from illnesses.
Come down with an illness
= to begin to have it
- I don’t feel well, I think am COMING DOWN with a cold.
Shake off an illness
I have had this cough for 5 days now, I just can’t SHAKE / FIGHT it OFF.
= to get rid of it
Fight off an illness
Take this medicine, it should help FIGHT / SHAKE OFF your cold.
Fight off an illness = to (try to) get rid of it
Get over an illness
I am feeling much better now, I think I have GOT / GOTTEN OVER my sickness.
Get over an illness = to recover from it
IELTS Speaking Idioms about Health
The following mean to feel unwell
I feel as sick as a dog =very sick I am feeling under the weather today
I feel a bit out of sorts today, but I am not sure why = a little sick
The following mean to feel well (after a sickness)
- To feel as right as rain I was sick last night, but now I feel as right as rain
- To be back on my feet I was off work last week with a cold but now I am back on my feet
- To be on the mend I had the flu last week, but I’m on the mend this week.
