IELTS Essays – Band 8

Some people think that public health within a country can be improved by government making laws regarding nutritious food. Others, however, think that health is a matter of personal choice and responsibility. Discuss both views and give your opinion.

Personal and public health are tightly related to food choices. While some people believe that the government should regulate nutrition to improve public wellness, others argue that it should be people’s decision whether to pursue a healthy diet or not. This essay will discuss both points of view and explain why the authorities should not control the types of food people can buy.

Legislators could impose laws concerning nutritious food in an effort to have a healthier population, public health costs. Even if this could be considered a good idea, it would be very quite difficult to implement. To achieve this target, the rulers could impose a levy on unhealthy food options, or reduce their availability on the grocery stores shelves. In Italy, for example, products such as carbonated sugary drinks and chips are heavily taxed. As a result, the sales of these items have decreased. However, if the authorities start to take control of what their citizens can or cannot eat, it may be seen as limitation of freedom.

Since personal freedom is an extremely important human right, many people think that they should be responsible for their choices regarding the food and drinks they decide to consume. I agree with this opinion because limiting nutritional options, even if it is done with the best outcome in mind, could consequently create dissatisfaction among the population, which would possibly lead to other public issues such as protests and demonstrations. A better approach could be educating the public about a healthy diet, which would help people make better-informed decisions about the food they consume. Many developed countries around the world employed this strategy and saw public health gains.

In conclusion, even though the government is able to control the dietary habits of its population through taxation and restrictions, healthier citizens and reduced public health expenses isn’t the only possible outcome. Limiting personal freedom could result in social unrest and for that reason diet decisions are better to be left up to well-informed individuals.

This response achieved the task requirements by discussing whether the government or individuals should be in control of their diet. The ideas are developed and supported by examples, the information is organised in paragraphs, and coherence is maintained throughout the essay. A range of sentences structures and advanced vocabulary is used in this work. Overall, it seems worthy of IELTS Band 8+.

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Nowadays many people choose ready-made food and refuse to cook at home. Why do you think it happens? What are the advantages and disadvantages of such a choice?

It is a very popular practice in the modern society to order ready-made food from restaurants, rather than cooking at home. The main reasons for such a tendency may be cheap prices in some restaurants and people’s desire to save some time . Even though ordering food some obvious advantages, its disadvantages should not be underestimated.

On the one hand, ordering prepared food may be the best choice for a busy person, who does not have time for cooking and cleaning. Cooking food at home requires a considerable amount of time, moreover the cleaning process may take even more time and resources than cooking itself. For example, cooking a simple dish such as chicken with rice home requires significant amounts of water and electricity for electrical appliances such as the oven and dishwasher. Hence, having an opportunity to order food from a restaurant will save a lot of time, electricity and water.

On the other hand, delegating the process of cooking to some restaurant a dramatic disadvantage of not having the information about the ingredients used in the meals. With high demand, grow the volumes of required products, which sometimes can affect the quality of purchased produce. For example, it is a very common practice in some restaurants to make salads from products that are about to go bad and mask the rotten scent by adding some chemicals and spices. Hence, some restaurants may use poor quality products or chemicals for boosting taste and preservatives, which may have a negative effect on the customer’s health in the long run.

In conclusion, ordering food from restaurants may be a tempting choice for people who have no time for cooking at home, but this approach has a critical disadvantage of being not informed about the ingredients used in the meal, which can have destructive consequences.

This response covers the task requirements by giving a reason why people would choose to buy ready-made food and discussing the advantages and disadvantages of this trend. The ideas are conveyed quite clearly and supported by examples, paragraphing helps to present the information in a neat and easy to follow way, and the level of coherence is adequate in this essay. A range of complex sentence forms and advanced vocabulary is used and there are very few instances of erroneous grammar or inaccurate expressions (see corrections underlined in blue). Overall, this essay is likely to score Band 8 in IELTS.

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