28 Health and medicine Exercises

A What are your symptoms? 28.1 What problems from A opposite might result if someone …?
1 eats too fast indigestion
2 kicks someone’s leg while playing football
3 hits someone in the eye
4 eats bad, rotten food
5 lies too long in the hot sun
6 runs much too fast to catch a bus
28.2 Read the remarks and answer the questions.
rash bruise lump spots a black eye
Casper ‘I must have picked up a bug Seth ‘It’s an unpleasant pain. I
All these noun phrases can be used with the verb have (got). I’ve got …
when I was travelling.’ hope I haven’t got an ear infection.’
… a sore throat / a temperature [a higher temperature than normal] / high/low blood pressure / chest
pains / backache / earache / a pain in my side / a rash on my chest / a bruise on my leg (e.g. after
playing football) / a black eye (e.g. after being hit in the eye) / a lump on my arm / indigestion (after Dalma ‘My hand is covered
eating too fast) / sickness and diarrhoea /daɪəˈrɪə/ [an upset stomach which makes you vomit and need to Zoe ‘The doctor said there’s a risk
in little red spots from where I I might suffer from heart disease if it
go to the toilet frequently] / sunburn / a virus. touched that strange plant.’ continues.’
Verbs: My back is aching. I shouldn’t have lifted all those heavy boxes.
My leg is itching - I think I’ve been bitten by an insect. [you want to scratch it all the time] Write the people’s names. Who has …?
My hands are trembling after the shock of falling down. [shaking slightly] 1 a rash? Dalma 2 earache? 3 a virus? 4 high blood pressure?
I had a headache and started shivering. I knew it was the flu. [shake because you are cold]
My foot hurts from where I knocked it against the table. 28.3 Match the sentences on the left with the ones on the right.
I had a cold and it took me two weeks to get over it. [to get better; more formal = to recover from it] 1 My shoulder is itching. d a I’ve been working too much.
Adjectives: I feel sick / breathless / dizzy. [my head is spinning] 2 My head hurts. b I feel so cold.
3 I’m shivering. c I think I need to see a psychiatrist.
I am depressed / exhausted / stressed.
4 I’m trembling. d I can’t stop scratching it.
Other expressions: I’ve lost my appetite / voice. 5 I’m really stressed and exhausted. e I banged it as I walked through the low doorway.
I think I’ve picked up a bug somewhere. [infml = caught a virus or infection] 6 I’m depressed. f I feel very nervous and scared.
I’ve broken my wrist / sprained my ankle / dislocated my shoulder.
She died of a heart attack. 28.4 Match the pictures with the sentences.
He contracted AIDS. [infml = ‘got’] A B C
My uncle suffered a stroke. [sudden change in the blood supply to a part of the brain, which can cause a loss
of the ability to move particular parts of the body; infml = ‘had’]

B What does the doctor prescribe? D E F

Take a teaspoonful of medicine last thing at night.
We’ll get the nurse to put a bandage on your wrist.
You’ll need to have some injections before you go to the Amazon. E
1 They put a bandage on my ankle.
I’m afraid you’re going to need an operation.
2 I had to have some injections.
You’ll have to have your leg put in plaster until the break mends. 3 My arm was in plaster for weeks.
I’m going to give you some tablets - take one in the morning and one at night. 4 I had to take two teaspoonfuls every night.
5 They operated me immediately.
Common mistakes 6 I have to take two tablets every night at bedtime.
One of the sentences above contains a mistake. Correct it.
A surgeon operates on a patient.
They decided to operate on her and remove the tumour. (NOT They decided to operate her.) 28.5 Answer the questions.
1 Which is correct? My aunt died (a) with (b) of a heart attack.
2 What is a more formal way of saying these? (a) He got AIDS in 2001. (b) She had a stroke.
3 What is an informal way of saying this? I had an infection but I recovered from it.
28.6 Over to you
Make a list of any of the problems mentioned in this unit that you yourself have had. What were the
symptoms? What did you do to solve the problem(s)?

62 English Vocabulary in Use Upper-intermediate English Vocabulary in Use Upper-intermediate 63

29 Medicine and technology Exercises
A A history of health technology 29.1 Look at A opposite and answer the questions about medical technology.
1 What did Arab scientists probably invent? glasses (two answers, one more formal)
Ancient Egypt The earliest crutches were in use.
2 What began to be used in 1896 to enable doctors to take photographs of the inside of
Middle Ages Spectacles1, probably invented by Arab scientists, were used people’s bodies?
to correct vision2.
3 How did the ancient Egyptians help disabled people to walk?
1500-1600 The first wheelchairs were developed. 4 What alternative to glasses became popular in the 1960s and 1970s?
1800-1900 1804: the first general anaesthetic3 was used in an 5 How could disabled people move around as early as 1500 to 1600?
operation in Japan.
1896: X-rays4 were first used in medicine. 29.2 Rewrite the words in bold using words from A and B opposite.
1960-1970 The first contact lenses5 were manufactured6. 1 Medical scanners are made manufactured at this factory.
2 Glasses were invented to correct problems with eyesight .
1 a more formal word for glasses 2 the ability to see 3 something used to make
3 Technology for medicine has made very fast progress
you unconscious when you have an operation, so that you do not feel any pain in the last ten years .
4 a type of radiation that makes possible photographs (also called ‘X-rays’) of hidden
4 There is now a large number of things that make
objects such as bones and organs in the body 5 a small piece of transparent
life better for people with medical problems.
plastic which is worn on the surface of your eye to improve your sight 6 made in
5 Copies of natural hips are very efficient.
large numbers, usually in a factory 6 Some disabled athletes can run as fast as able-bodied ones using legs.
7 Scientists are working on arms that can be controlled directly by the person’s brain.
B The present day
Medical technology has made rapid1 advances2 in recent decades3. 29.3 Using words from the opposite page, say what each object is for.
Nowadays, a vast4 range of devices5 is available: people with hearing
difficulties wear sophisticated6 hearing aids7; people with heart problems
wear tiny pacemakers8. Artificial9 hips10 and knees are common, and are
highly11 efficient. People who have lost an arm or a leg can have a prosthetic12
leg or a modern robotic13 arm and hand, which they can use to pick things up
like a natural hand. Eyesight problems can be corrected by laser surgery14.
1 very fast 2 improvements or developments 3 a period of 10 years 4 very
1 a device for people with 2 3
wide 5 object or machine made for a particular purpose 6 clever in a complicated hearing difficulties
way and able to do complicated tasks 7 a small device put inside someone’s ear to
help them hear better 8 a small device put inside someone’s chest to help their heart
beat correctly 9 not natural, a copy made by humans 10 the joint which connects
the leg to the upper part of the body 11 very (more formal) 12 made to replace a
missing arm or leg 13 able to be controlled and moved by the user
14 medical operations using powerful narrow beams of light 4 5 6

C The future
A recent TV documentary predicted the following developments in medical technology. 29.4 Complete the missing words. You are given the first letter(s). A preposition is missing in
sentence 3. Add it.
• Scanners which can identify health problems at an early stage1 will become more and
more sophisticated. 1 Doctors will be able to i dentify diseases at an early s in the future using
• Diagnosing2 illnesses from a distance. Patients will sit at their home computers, describe sophisticated sc .
their symptoms and send information automatically to their doctor (for example, 2 Doctors will be able to d a patient’s illness from a distance. Patients will send
their blood pressure3 or body temperature) using instruments such as thermometers information a to their doctor.
connected to their computer. 3 K s means doctors no longer need to open a patient’s body when they
• Computers and huge databases will provide doctors with more and more information and
operate them.
4 Information on large computer d will help doctors t diseases and give
the tools4 to treat diseases.
them new t to cure illnesses.
• Keyhole surgery5 will become more common. It will not be necessary to cut open a
person’s body to operate on them. 29.5 Over to you
1 during the first period of development 2 name the exact character of a disease or a problem, by examining it
3 measure of the strength at which the blood flows through the body 4 something that helps you do something Have you used or experienced any of the examples of medical technology mentioned in this unit?
5 medical operations in which a very small hole is made in a person’s body to reach the organ or tissue inside How? When? Write true sentences.

64 English Vocabulary in Use Upper-intermediate English Vocabulary in Use Upper-intermediate 65

30 Health and lifestyle Exercises
A Diet 30.1 Rewrite the words in bold using words from A opposite.
Some types of food are considered to be good for our health. Others can cause long-term1 health 1 If people eat these foods in big amounts large quantities , it may be dangerous.
problems if they are consumed2 in large quantities. Here are some examples. 2 Certain foods are thought by scientists to have a positive effect on
our bodies.
healthy ... not so healthy ...
3 Foods with a lot of fat in them may cause health problems.
oily fish (e.g. salmon) sugary foods (e.g. fizzy3 drinks) 4 Some foods may cause health problems that last long into the future.
fruit and nuts4 food with a high fat or high salt content5
wholemeal6 bread processed7 food 30.2 Match the adjectives and nouns to make five collocations to fill the gaps in the sentences
below.
1 lasting a long time into the future 2 eaten (fml) 3 with a lot of bubbles 4 dry fruits of some trees with a

hard shell 5 amount that is in the food 6 containing all the grain, with nothing taken out 7 treated with adjectives nouns

chemicals to preserve the food or to add taste or colour oily processed wholemeal mental fizzy drinks bread fish health foods

Some foods are considered to be superfoods - foods that may prevent diseases and improve 1 Wholemeal bread is usually considered to be healthy because it contains the complete grain, with
mental1 as well as physical2 health. Foods that are often listed as superfoods include: nothing taken out.
• Blueberries: may improve short-term3 memory and slow4 2 may taste good when you’re very thirsty, but they often have a high
the ageing process5. sugar content.
3 Types of include salmon.
• Apples: a good source6 of vitamin C; they can also lower7 cholesterol.
4 often contain artificial colours to make them look more attractive.
• Spinach: high in vitamin A; it can boost8 the immune system.
5 Some foods can be good for our as well as our bodies.
• Vegetable juice (especially tomato): can reduce the risk9 of heart disease.

1 of the mind 2 of the body 3 lasting a short time 4 make it happen more slowly 30.3 Verb-noun collocations. Match the sentence beginnings on the left with the endings on
5 the changes to our body and mind by which we grow old 6 the place it comes from
the right.
7 reduce/take the level down 8 improve or increase 9 make less likely that it will happen 1 Certain foods can slow d a cholesterol.
2 Some foods can boost b the risk of heart disease.
B Lifestyle 3 Some foods can lower c the immune system.
4 Other foods can reduce d the ageing process.
Read the magazine extracts about lifestyle issues. Note the use of the adjective and noun forms of
the same word.
30.4 Can you remember which positive effect each of these foods may have? Choose your
There has been a sharp rise1 in the number answers from 30.3 (a-d).
Keeping fit need not be difficult. You can
of children who are obese2. Childhood maintain5 a good level of fitness with 1 spinach c 2 vegetable juice 3 apples 4 blueberries
obesity is now a major3 problem. Children a simple routine of daily exercise. Start
often take too little exercise. exercising now! 30.5 Correct the mistakes in these sentences. There may be more than one.
1 Blueberries can improve short-time memory. term
2 Many fruits are a good sauce of vitamin C and provide mayor health benefits.
People often do not realise how stressful Bad habits can cause serious harm6 3 Oily fishes should form part of a healthy diet.
their jobs are. Stress can cause high blood to the body. Alcohol and tobacco are 4 Which do you prefer to eat as a snack if you’re hungry, fruits or nuts?
pressure, increased risk of heart attacks and particularly harmful if consumed in large 5 A: There’s a new Chinese restaurant in town. B: Good! I love Chinese foods.
depression4. quantities over a long period.
6 There has been a sharp raise in the number of people suffering from depresion.
1 an increase that is sudden and quick 2 extremely fat 3 very big and serious 4 a mental illness when
5 keep (fml) 6 injury or damage
30.6 Complete the two versions of each sentence. Use related word forms, as in the example.
someone is extremely unhappy and anxious for a long period harmful
1 Tobacco and alcohol can cause a lot of harm / can be to our health.
2 Children who are / who suffer from need to exercise more.
Language help 3 Her job is very / causes her a lot of and is very tiring.
4 How can we keep / maintain a good level of ? The answer is to
The nouns food and fruit can be both uncountable and countable. When we refer to food and fruit get regular / to regularly.
in general we use the uncountable form (e.g. That restaurant serves good food / I love fruit). The
plural forms, foods/fruits, are used to refer to individual types or examples of food (e.g. fatty foods,
citrus fruits). We always use fish in the singular. 30.7 Over to you
List the foods that you eat most regularly. How many are (a) healthy (b) not so healthy? Do you
consume any superfoods? Why? Why not?

66 English Vocabulary in Use Upper-intermediate English Vocabulary in Use Upper-intermediate 67