A recent study in Italy found that many middle-aged people who think they’re not obese might actually be wrong. The study looked at body fat instead of just weight and argued that using a lower cut-off point for obesity would give a more accurate picture of who is affected. As people get older, they lose muscle and gain fat around their organs, which can happen without any change in weight. The challenge is finding an easy way to check for obesity.

The usual way to measure weight is by using something called body mass index (BMI). This involves dividing a person’s weight in kilograms by the square of their height in meters. A BMI of 18.5-25 is considered healthy, 25-29 means overweight, and 30 or above means obese. While BMI is a quick and common method recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO), it can’t tell the difference between fat, muscle, and bone. The Italian study looked at 4,800 adults aged 40-80 and suggested measuring body fat percentage instead. When they did this, they found that a lot more people were obese compared to their BMI classification.

The researchers say that using the current WHO standard for obesity might mean missing out on many middle-aged and older adults who are at risk of diseases like type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and certain cancers. They suggest using a BMI of 27 as the new cut-off point for obesity. However, more studies in different countries are needed to confirm these findings. The study also didn’t look at where the fat was in people’s bodies or their diet and exercise habits, which could affect their risk of obesity.

BMI is probably not going to be replaced any time soon because it’s cheaper than body fat scans. But researchers and experts think that other ways of defining obesity, like measuring waist size and looking for specific signs of excess weight, might give more useful results. The search for a simple and easy way to check for obesity is still going on.

Original news source: Millions more middle-aged are obese, study suggests (BBC)

🎧 Listen:

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📖 Vocabulary:

Group or Classroom Activities

Warm-up Activities:

– Charades

Instructions: Divide the class into two teams. Give each team a set of words related to the article (e.g. obesity, BMI, body fat, etc.). One person from each team will come to the front of the class and act out the word without speaking. The team members have one minute to guess the word. Keep track of the points for each team. Switch players and continue until all the words have been acted out. The team with the most points wins.

– News Summary

Instructions: Divide the class into pairs. Each pair will read the article and then summarize it in their own words. After they have finished, ask one pair to share their summary with the class. Encourage the other pairs to ask questions or add information to the summary. Repeat with a different pair for each class.

– Opinion Poll

Instructions: Ask the class to stand up and move to one side of the room if they agree with the statement, and the other side if they disagree. Read the following statements related to the article and ask the students to choose a side:
1. Using body fat percentage is a more accurate way to measure obesity than BMI.
2. Middle-aged and older adults who are not classified as obese by BMI might still be at risk for certain diseases.
3. The WHO should change the cut-off point for obesity to BMI 27.
After each statement, ask a few students from each side to explain their reasoning.

– Word Association

Instructions: Write the word “obesity” on the board. Ask the students to quickly write down as many words as they can think of that are related to obesity in one minute. After one minute, ask each student to share one word they wrote down. Write all the words on the board. As a class, discuss the connections between the words and the article.

– Sketch It

Instructions: Divide the class into pairs. Give each pair a sheet of paper and a pen. One person in each pair will describe a scene or concept related to the article, while the other person tries to sketch it based on the description. After a few minutes, switch roles. Each pair can then share their sketches with the class and explain the connection to the article.

🤔 Comprehension Questions:

1. What did a recent study in Italy find about middle-aged people and obesity?
2. Why did the study argue that using a lower cut-off point for obesity would be more accurate?
3. What happens to people’s bodies as they get older that can contribute to obesity?
4. How is weight usually measured?
5. Why is BMI not able to accurately differentiate between fat, muscle, and bone?
6. What did the Italian study find when they measured body fat percentage instead of using BMI?
7. What diseases are middle-aged and older adults at risk of if they are obese?
8. What are some other ways that researchers and experts suggest for defining obesity?
Go to answers ⇩

🎧✍️ Listen and Fill in the Gaps:

A recent study in Italy found that many middle-aged people who think they’re not obese might actually be wrong. The study looked at body fat instead of just weight and argued that using a lower cut-off point for obesity would give a more accurate (1)______ of who is (2)______. As people get older, they lose muscle and gain fat around their organs, which can happen without any (3)______ in weight. The challenge is finding an easy way to check for obesity.

The (4)______ way to measure weight is by using something called body mass index (BMI). This involves dividing a person’s (5)______ in (6)______ by the square of their height in meters. A BMI of 18.5-25 is considered healthy, 25-29 means overweight, and 30 or above means obese. While BMI is a quick and common method recommended by the (7)______ Health (8)______ (WHO), it can’t tell the difference between fat, muscle, and bone. The Italian study looked at 4,800 adults aged 40-80 and suggested measuring body fat percentage instead. When they did this, they found that a lot more people were obese (9)______ to their BMI classification.

The researchers say that (10)______ the current WHO standard for obesity might mean missing out on many middle-aged and (11)______ adults who are at risk of diseases like type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and certain cancers. They suggest using a BMI of 27 as the new cut-off point for obesity. However, more studies in (12)______ countries are needed to confirm these findings. The study also didn’t look at where the fat was in people’s bodies or their diet and exercise habits, which could affect their risk of obesity.

BMI is probably not (13)______ to be replaced any time soon because it’s (14)______ than body fat scans. But researchers and experts think that other ways of defining obesity, like measuring waist size and looking for specific signs of (15)______ weight, might give more useful results. The search for a simple and easy way to (16)______ for obesity is still going on.
Go to answers ⇩

💬 Discussion Questions:

Students can ask a partner these questions, or discuss them as a group.

1. What is the difference between weight and body fat?
2. How do people’s bodies change as they get older?
3. Do you think it’s important to have an easy way to check for obesity? Why or why not?
4. How does the usual way of measuring weight work?
5. Why is BMI not always an accurate measurement of obesity?
6. What did the Italian study find when they measured body fat percentage?
7. Why do the researchers suggest using a BMI of 27 as the new cut-off point for obesity?
8. Do you think it’s necessary to conduct more studies in different countries to confirm these findings? Why or why not?
9. What other factors do you think could affect a person’s risk of obesity?
10. Why is BMI still commonly used despite its limitations?
11. What are some other ways that experts suggest defining obesity?
12. How do you think measuring waist size could be a useful way to check for obesity?
13. Do you think it’s important for individuals to be aware of their risk of obesity? Why or why not?
14. How do you think the search for a simple and easy way to check for obesity could benefit society?
15. Can you think of any potential drawbacks or limitations to finding a new method for checking obesity? Why or why not?

Individual Activities

📖💭 Vocabulary Meanings:

Match each word to its meaning.

Words:
1. obese
2. accurate
3. organs
4. challenge
5. method
6. recommended
7. classification
8. researchers
9. standard
10. risk
11. confirm
12. habits
13. replaced
14. defining
15. excess

Meanings:
(A) The possibility of something bad happening
(B) Correct or exact
(C) A difficult task or problem
(D) People who study a subject in detail to discover new information
(E) More than what is needed or usual
(F) To show that something is true or correct
(G) A way of doing something
(H) Parts of the body that have specific functions, like the heart or liver
(I) Suggested as being good or suitable
(J) The act of arranging things into groups
(K) To take the place of something else
(L) A level of quality or achievement that is considered acceptable
(M) Explaining the meaning of something
(N) Very overweight
(O) Regular actions or behaviors
Go to answers ⇩

🔡 Multiple Choice Questions:

1. What did a recent study in Italy focus on when determining obesity?
(a) Body fat
(b) Weight
(c) Muscle mass
(d) Organ size

2. What happens to people as they get older in terms of their body composition?
(a) They lose fat and gain muscle around their organs
(b) They gain muscle and lose fat around their organs
(c) They maintain the same amount of muscle and fat around their organs
(d) They lose muscle and gain fat around their organs

3. What is the usual method for measuring weight?
(a) Body fat percentage
(b) Waist size
(c) Muscle mass
(d) Body mass index (BMI)

4. What does a BMI of 30 or above indicate?
(a) Overweight
(b) Healthy weight
(c) Obesity
(d) Underweight

5. What did the Italian study find when they measured body fat percentage instead of using BMI?
(a) More people were classified as overweight
(b) More people were classified as underweight
(c) More people were classified as obese
(d) More people were classified as healthy weight

6. What diseases are middle-aged and older adults at risk of if they are obese?
(a) Type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and certain cancers
(b) Common cold, allergies, and asthma
(c) Arthritis, osteoporosis, and back pain
(d) Depression, anxiety, and insomnia

7. What did the Italian study suggest as the new cut-off point for obesity?
(a) A BMI of 25
(b) A BMI of 27
(c) A BMI of 30
(d) A BMI of 35

8. What other methods are researchers and experts considering to define obesity?
(a) Measuring body fat percentage and muscle mass
(b) Measuring waist size and looking for specific signs of excess weight
(c) Measuring organ size and bone density
(d) Measuring height and weight only

Go to answers ⇩

🕵️ True or False Questions:

1. Using the current WHO standard for obesity might mean missing out on many middle-aged and older adults who are at risk of diseases like type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and certain cancers.
2. BMI can differentiate between fat, muscle, and bone.
3. A recent study in Italy found that many middle-aged people who think they’re obese might actually be wrong.
4. Other ways of defining obesity, like measuring waist size and looking for specific signs of excess weight, might give more useful results.
5. The usual way to measure weight is by using something called body mass index (BMI).
6. The study looked at weight instead of just body fat to get a more accurate picture of obesity.
7. The Italian study found that a lot more people were obese when measuring body fat percentage instead of using BMI.
8. As people get older, they gain muscle and lose fat around their organs, which can happen without any change in weight.
Go to answers ⇩

📝 Write a Summary:

Write a summary of this news article in two sentences.

Writing Questions:

Answer the following questions. Write as much as you can for each answer.

1. What did a recent study in Italy find about middle-aged people and obesity?
2. Why is using body mass index (BMI) not always accurate in determining obesity?
3. What did the Italian study suggest as a new cut-off point for obesity?
4. What are some of the health risks associated with obesity?
5. Why is it important to find a simple and easy way to check for obesity?

✅ Answers

🤔✅ Comprehension Question Answers:

1. The recent study in Italy found that many middle-aged people who think they’re not obese might actually be wrong.
2. The study argued that using a lower cut-off point for obesity would be more accurate because as people get older, they lose muscle and gain fat around their organs, which can happen without any change in weight.
3. As people get older, they lose muscle and gain fat around their organs, which can contribute to obesity.
4. Weight is usually measured using something called body mass index (BMI), which involves dividing a person’s weight in kilograms by the square of their height in meters.
5. BMI is not able to accurately differentiate between fat, muscle, and bone because it only looks at weight and height, and cannot distinguish between the different types of tissue in the body.
6. When the Italian study measured body fat percentage instead of using BMI, they found that a lot more people were obese compared to their BMI classification.
7. Middle-aged and older adults who are obese are at risk of diseases like type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and certain cancers.
8. Researchers and experts suggest other ways for defining obesity, such as measuring waist size and looking for specific signs of excess weight.
Go back to questions ⇧

🎧✍️✅ Listen and Fill in the Gaps Answers:

(1) picture
(2) affected
(3) change
(4) usual
(5) weight
(6) kilograms
(7) World
(8) Organization
(9) compared
(10) using
(11) older
(12) different
(13) going
(14) cheaper
(15) excess
(16) check
Go back to questions ⇧

📖💭✅ Vocabulary Meanings Answers:

1. obese
Answer: (N) Very overweight

2. accurate
Answer: (B) Correct or exact

3. organs
Answer: (H) Parts of the body that have specific functions, like the heart or liver

4. challenge
Answer: (C) A difficult task or problem

5. method
Answer: (G) A way of doing something

6. recommended
Answer: (I) Suggested as being good or suitable

7. classification
Answer: (J) The act of arranging things into groups

8. researchers
Answer: (D) People who study a subject in detail to discover new information

9. standard
Answer: (L) A level of quality or achievement that is considered acceptable

10. risk
Answer: (A) The possibility of something bad happening

11. confirm
Answer: (F) To show that something is true or correct

12. habits
Answer: (O) Regular actions or behaviors

13. replaced
Answer: (K) To take the place of something else

14. defining
Answer: (M) Explaining the meaning of something

15. excess
Answer: (E) More than what is needed or usual
Go back to questions ⇧

🔡✅ Multiple Choice Answers:

1. What did a recent study in Italy focus on when determining obesity?
Answer: (a) Body fat

2. What happens to people as they get older in terms of their body composition?
Answer: (d) They lose muscle and gain fat around their organs

3. What is the usual method for measuring weight?
Answer: (d) Body mass index (BMI)

4. What does a BMI of 30 or above indicate?
Answer: (c) Obesity

5. What did the Italian study find when they measured body fat percentage instead of using BMI?
Answer: (c) More people were classified as obese

6. What diseases are middle-aged and older adults at risk of if they are obese?
Answer: (a) Type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and certain cancers

7. What did the Italian study suggest as the new cut-off point for obesity?
Answer: (b) A BMI of 27

8. What other methods are researchers and experts considering to define obesity?
Answer: (b) Measuring waist size and looking for specific signs of excess weight
Go back to questions ⇧

🕵️✅ True or False Answers:

1. Using the current WHO standard for obesity might mean missing out on many middle-aged and older adults who are at risk of diseases like type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and certain cancers. (Answer: True)
2. BMI can differentiate between fat, muscle, and bone. (Answer: False)
3. A recent study in Italy found that many middle-aged people who think they’re obese might actually be wrong. (Answer: False)
4. Other ways of defining obesity, like measuring waist size and looking for specific signs of excess weight, might give more useful results. (Answer: True)
5. The usual way to measure weight is by using something called body mass index (BMI). (Answer: True)
6. The study looked at weight instead of just body fat to get a more accurate picture of obesity. (Answer: False)
7. The Italian study found that a lot more people were obese when measuring body fat percentage instead of using BMI. (Answer: True)
8. As people get older, they gain muscle and lose fat around their organs, which can happen without any change in weight. (Answer: False)
Go back to questions ⇧