Listening

Warm Up

Helpful Words and Phrases

Listen and repeat.

  1. ward off
    • ex. Drinking orange juice can help ward off colds. It has a lot of vitamin C.
  2. nutrition
    • ex. Eating fruits and vegetables is important for good nutrition.
  3. pregnancy
    • ex. During Anna’s pregnancy, she visited the doctor every month to make sure the baby was healthy.
  4. fetal
    • ex. The doctor checked the fetal health during the mother’s checkup.
  5. cognitive
    • ex. Reading books is good for children's cognitive development because it helps them learn new words.

Article

Read the article below and answer your tutor's questions.

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Experts say eating well is good for both the heart and the brain. Research shows that what we eat can help ward off heart diseases. And what’s good for the heart is also good for the brain. It’s never too early to start a better diet to improve heart and brain health.

Nutrition starts affecting brain health during pregnancy. What a mother eats and doesn’t eat can affect her baby’s fetal brain development. A mom’s diet also affects her child’s mental health. Mothers who eat a high-fat diet during pregnancy increase their baby’s risk for mental health issues.

But it doesn’t stop there. Good nutrition is important for brain health at all ages. In a child’s first two years, eating well helps build brain connections. Bad diets can slow down cognitive growth. For kids and teens, eating fish, vegetables, and fruits can help them do well in school. Meanwhile, eating too many foods with high fat and sugar can make it harder to think and solve problems. A healthy diet helps adults maintain better cognitive functions and can prevent memory problems in older age.

This material was based on an article by The Associated Press.

Discussion

Choose a topic and discuss the questions with your tutor.

Good Nutrition

  • The article says it’s never too early to start a better diet to improve heart and brain health. What do you think this statement means? Discuss.
  • Do you agree that what you eat affects your performance and cognitive functions? Why or why not? Discuss.
  • Eating healthy is very important for children’s and teens’ development and school performance. How do you think parents can encourage children to eat healthier foods? Discuss.

Healthy Diet

  • What are some common bad eating habits, and how can we change them? Discuss.
  • How do you think a healthy diet affects mental health? Discuss.
  • What aspects do you think influence people’s food choices the most (ex. budget, what tastes good)? Discuss.