A Monologue on Balanced Diet - IELTS Listening Sample Answer

The IELTS Listening section comprises two conversations and two monologues. Candidates need to answer 40 IELTS listening questions. This topic - A public lecture for new students about health issues in IELTS Listening section Four.

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Candidates need to answer the following question types:

• Choose the correct answers
• Complete the notes
• Complete the diagram

Audio Transcript

You are going to hear a part of a public lecture for new students. First, look at questions 33 to 35.

Now listen and answer questions 33 to 35.

John: Good morning. Good morning, everyone and welcome to our regular lecture on health issues. The series of lectures is organized by the students union and is part of the union's attempt to help you, the students of this university to stay healthy while coping with study and social life at the same time. So, it's a great pleasure for me to welcome back Miss Diane Greenebaum who is a professional dietician and has been kind enough to give up her time, in what I know is a very hectic schedule to come along and talk to us today.

Diana: Thank you. Thank you very much, John. May I take the pleasure to be back? Now stressing that university, being away from home and having to look after yourselves, learning your way around the campus, all contribute to making it quite hard sometimes to ensure that your diet is adequate. So, today, I'm going to talk about ways of making sure that you eat well while at the same time staying within your budget.

Now look at questions 36 to 41.

As you listen to the second part of the lecture, complete the notes and diagram in the spaces provided.

If you have a well-balanced diet, then you should be getting all the vitamins that you need for normal daily living. However, sometimes we think we're eating the right foods, but the vitamins are escaping, as a result of cooking. And anyway, we're not getting the full benefit of them. Now, if you lack vitamins in any way the solution isn't to rush off and take vitamin pills though they can sometimes help. No, it's far better to look at your diet and how you prepare your food.

So what are vitamins? Well, the dictionary tells us they are food factors essential in small quantities to maintain life. Now, there are fat soluble vitamins, which can be stored for quite some time by the body and there are water soluble vitamins, which are removed more rapidly from the body and so a regular daily intake of these ones is needed.

Okay. So how can you ensure that your diet contains enough of the vitamins you need? Well, first of all, you may have to establish some new eating habits. No more chips at the uni canteen, I'm afraid. Firstly, you must eat a variety of foods. Then you need to ensure that you eat at least four servings of fruit and vegetables daily. Now, you'll need to shop two or three times a week to make sure that they are fresh and store your vegetables in the fridge or in a cool dark place.

Now, let's just refresh our memories by looking at the healthy diet pyramid. Okay, can you all see that? Good. Well, now as you see we've got three levels to our pyramid. At the top, in the smallest area are the things which we should really be trying to avoid as much as possible. Things like, yes, sugar, salt, butter, all that sort of thing. Next in the middle of our pyramid, we find the things that we can eat in moderation, not too much though. And that's where we find milk, lean meat, fish, nuts, eggs, and then at the bottom of the pyramid are the things that you can eat lots off, because they're the things that are really good for you. Here we have bread, vegetables and fruits. So don't lose sight of your healthy diet pyramid when you do your shopping.

That is the end of section four. You now have half a minute to check your answers.

That is the end of the listening test. You now have 10 minutes to transfer your answers to the listening answer sheet.

Questions 33-35

Choose the correct answers A-D and write them next to 33-35 on your answer sheet.

According to the first speaker:

33. The focus of the lecture series is on

1. organising work and study
2. maintaining a healthy lifestyle
3. coping with homesickness
4. settling in at university

Answer: B

Explanation: As mentioned by John ‘welcome to our regular lecture on health issues’. Option B is similar to this statement by john so the answer will be option B.

Also, check:

34. The lecture will be given by

1. the president of the Union
2. the campus doctor
3. a sports celebrity
4. a health expert

Answer: D

Explanation: As mentioned by the speaker ‘Miss Diane Greenebaum who is a professional dietician and has been kind enough to give up her time, in what I know is a very hectic schedule to come along and talk to us today’. “Professional dietician'' is similar in meaning to health expert’ hence the answer is D.

35. This week’s lecture is on

1. campus food
2. dieting
3. sensible eating
4. saving money

Answer: C

Explanation: Diana stated ‘ I'm going to talk about ways of making sure that you eat well while at the same time staying within your budget’. Therefore the answer is C.

Questions 36-39.

Complete the notes. Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS for each answer.

A balanced diet:

A balanced diet will give you enough vitamins for normal daily living.
Vitamins in food can be lost through 36 ____________

Types of vitamins:

(a) Fat soluble vitamins are stored by the body.
(b) Water soluble vitamins – not stored, so you need a 37____________

Getting enough vitamins

Eat 38 ____________ of foods.
Buy plenty of vegetables and store them in 39____________

Question 36.

Answer: cooking

Explanation: The speaker stated ‘sometimes we think we're eating the right foods, but the vitamins are escaping, as a result of cooking’. So the answer must be cooking.

Question 37.

Answer: (regular) daily intake

Explanation: It is stated ‘there are water-soluble vitamins, which are removed more rapidly from the body and so a regular daily intake of these ones is needed’. Therefore the answer should be (regular) daily intake.

Question 38.

Answer: (a) variety

Explanation: As mentioned in the lecture ‘Firstly, you must eat a variety of foods’. Therefore the answer must be variety.

Question 39.

Answer: the dark//the fridge//a cool place//a dark place

Explanation: As mentioned in the lecture ‘you'll need to shop two or three times a week to make sure that they are fresh and store your vegetables in the fridge or in a cool dark place’. Thus the answer must be a cool dark place.

Questions 40-41.

Complete the diagram by writing NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS in the boxes provided.

Question 40.

Answer: eat-in moderation//not too much

Explanation: The speaker said ‘ we find the things that we can eat in moderation, not too much though’. According to this, the answer is eat-in moderation//not too much.

Question 41.

Answer: eat lots//eat most

Explanation: The speaker informed us that ‘ the bottom of the pyramid are the things that you can eat lots off because they're the things that are really good for you’. Hence the answer should be - eat lots.