Health · Problem and solution · Band 7.5
The Causes of Rising Obesity Rates
The question, a model answer written to the band 7.5 descriptors, why it scores that band against the 4 official criteria, topic vocabulary, and a common mistake to avoid.
Problem and solution
Obesity rates have risen sharply in many countries over the past few decades. What do you think are the main causes of this problem, and what solutions could be introduced to address it? Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience. Write at least 250 words.
Model answer (band 7.5)
Written to the band 7.5 descriptors, not by a real examiner. Read it for structure and language, then write your own in your own words. Examiners can tell a memorised essay from an original one.
Rising obesity rates reflect a combination of changed environments and changed behaviour, and understanding both is essential to designing solutions that address the problem at its roots rather than merely its symptoms.
The primary cause is the widespread availability of cheap, highly processed food engineered to be calorie-dense and immediately palatable, which is now far more accessible and affordable than fresh, whole ingredients in many urban areas. Combined with portion sizes that have steadily grown over recent decades, this makes overconsumption the default outcome rather than a deliberate choice for most people. A second significant cause is the decline in everyday physical activity: jobs that once required manual labour have shifted to sedentary office work, and car-dependent urban design means walking is no longer a routine part of daily commuting for most people in developed countries.
Addressing this requires changes at both the food environment and the built environment level. Governments could restrict the marketing of high-sugar, high-fat foods to children, following the approach already taken in several countries, while subsidising fresh produce to narrow the price gap with processed alternatives, making the healthier choice the easier one rather than relying purely on willpower. Urban planning that prioritises cycling infrastructure, walkable neighbourhoods, and accessible green spaces would also help restore physical activity as a natural part of daily life rather than something people must deliberately schedule.
In conclusion, rising obesity stems from an environment that consistently makes unhealthy choices easy and healthy ones effortful, and the most effective, lasting solutions reshape that underlying environment rather than simply telling individuals to try harder on their own.
Why this answer scores band 7.5
Mapped to the 4 official IELTS Writing criteria.
- Task Response: identifies environmental and behavioural causes with precision and proposes solutions that target the environment rather than just individual willpower.
- Coherence and Cohesion: a clear two-cause, two-solution structure with explicit linking ('A second significant cause') that keeps the argument easy to follow.
- Lexical Resource: sophisticated, accurate vocabulary ('calorie-dense', 'built environment', 'subsidise') used appropriately throughout.
- Grammatical Range and Accuracy: long, well-constructed sentences with multiple clauses maintain clarity and grammatical accuracy.
Useful vocabulary & collocations
Phrases used in the model answer that lift Lexical Resource naturally.
Common mistake on this type of question
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