37   I can discuss health issues

A    Diseases common among younger people

Nowadays fewer children suffer from infectious diseases, but the number of children around the world with asthma has increased. Doctors believe that the breathing difficulties of asthma sufferers are often caused by allergies to smoke, food, or pollution. There has also been a dramatic increase in obesity in young people in the last 20 years. Amongst other things, it can lead to heart attacks, diabetes, and depression.

 

Glossary

suffer from sth  have the experience of sth bad.

infectious  An infectious disease passes easily from person to person. infection N.

disease  an illness (e.g. skin disease, kidney disease).

asthma  a medical condition which makes it difficult to breathe.

increase  get larger in number or amount. increase N. OPP decrease V, N.

breathe (in/out)  take air into your lungs (see picture), and let it out again.

allergy  a medical condition that makes you ill when you touch, eat, or breathe sth that doesn’t normally make other people ill. allergic ADJ.

dramatic  sudden and surprising.

obesity the state of being so fat that you are unhealthy. obese ADJ.

lead to sth  cause or have sth as a result, often sth bad.

heart attack  When sb has a heart attack, their heart (see picture) suddenly stops working normally.

diabetes  a disease in which your body can’t control the level of sugar in the blood. diabetic ADJ.

depression  a feeling of being very unhappy (this can also be an illness). depressed ADJ. 

B    Diseases common among older people

Word    Example      Meaning

disabled

disability N  My sister is disabled: she can’t walk.  not able to use a part of your body properly.

blind

go or be blind SYN lose your sight  My uncle is going blind.  not able to see.

deaf

go or be deaf  I’m a bit deaf, so please speak up.  not able to hear.

(have a) stroke  She had a stroke, but she’s able to walk again now.  a sudden illness which affects the brain and can stop you walking, talking, etc.

heart disease  He suffers from heart disease.  a serious long-term condition causing problems for your heart.

cancer

e.g. skin cancer  He got lung cancer from smoking.  a very serious illness in which tumours often grow in the body.

arthritis  

arthritic ADJ  I can’t walk very far because of my arthritis.  a disease which causes pain when you bend your arms, fingers, etc.

memory loss  She suffers from memory loss: she forgets things easily.  a condition in which you lose your ability to remember things.

 

spotlight  go+ adjective

Go + adjective means ‘become’, e.g. go blind, go deaf. You can also use it to describe a change of colour:

His hair went white.

She stopped breathing and her face went blue.

7   Test yourself. Cover the words and examples, and look at the meanings. Can you remember the words?