IELTS Speaking Part 3: Health & Lifestyle (Band 9 Sample)
IELTS Speaking Part 3 broadens your Part 2 topic into an abstract discussion — here, health and lifestyle. A band-9 answer states a clear view, develops it with reasons and concrete examples, and weighs the other side before landing a balanced conclusion. Below are four common discussion questions with band-9 model answers, plus why they score 9 and the collocations worth stealing.
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01 · Discussion questions & Band 9 answers
Q: Why do you think many people today have unhealthy lifestyles?
I think it largely comes down to how modern life is set up. So many jobs are sedentary, cheap processed food is everywhere and heavily marketed, and after a long day people are often too exhausted to cook properly or exercise. In other words, the unhealthy option is usually the easy, convenient one, and we're up against an environment that quietly nudges us in the wrong direction.
name the root cause, then reframeQ: Whose responsibility is it to keep people healthy — individuals or the government?
It's shared, but I'd put the primary responsibility on the individual, since ultimately we each choose what we eat and how active we are. That said, governments shape the choices available to us. Things like taxing sugary drinks, regulating advertising and building safe places to exercise can make the healthy option the easier one, which is often more effective than simply telling people to behave better.
assign the balance, then complicateQ: Do you think mental health is taken as seriously as physical health?
It's improving, but I don't think we're there yet. For a long time mental health carried a real stigma — people were expected to just "snap out of it" — whereas nobody would say that about a broken leg. Attitudes are shifting, especially among younger people who talk about it far more openly, but there's still a gap between talking about it and actually funding proper support.
concede progress, expose the gapQ: How can people be encouraged to live healthier lives?
I think the key is to make the healthy choice the easy and appealing choice, rather than relying on willpower or guilt. Scare campaigns tend to wear off quickly. What works better is practical stuff — safe cycling routes, affordable fresh food, exercise built into the school day. If you change the environment people live in, healthier habits tend to follow far more naturally than if you just lecture them.
reject one approach, back another02 · Why this scores Band 9
Each answer builds an argument in stages — claim, reason, example, then a qualifying turn ("In other words...", "That said...") — so the discussion develops rather than lists points. The delivery holds across the longer turns without hesitation.
Health-and-society vocabulary is precise and idiomatic — "sedentary", "processed food", "carried a real stigma", "snap out of it", "wear off" — and the collocations carry the argument rather than decorating it.
A wide range is handled accurately: a "so... that" implied result, a concessive with "whereas" ("nobody would say that about a broken leg"), and a first conditional ("If you change the environment people live in, healthier habits tend to follow"). Complex ideas come out without breakdown.
Longer turns are chunked into clear thought groups with stress on the contrast words, so the intonation signals emphasis and qualification the way a fluent debater's would.
03 · Useful phrases for this topic
Tap a phrase to see what it means and how to use it. Natural phrases like these lift your Lexical Resource score.
04 · Frequently asked questions
Do I need medical knowledge for this topic?
No. Part 3 tests reasoning in English, not medicine. A clear opinion backed by everyday logic and a plausible example ('safe cycling routes', 'taxing sugary drinks') scores far higher than health statistics you're unsure of.
Can I talk about mental as well as physical health?
Yes — mental health comes up increasingly often, and handling it thoughtfully shows range. Just answer the specific question asked; if it is about health generally, you can mention both, but keep each point developed.
How do I sound balanced on responsibility questions?
Assign where the balance lies, then acknowledge the other side ("I'd put the primary responsibility on the individual... That said, governments shape the choices"). Committing to a position while weighing both is exactly what band 9 rewards.
How long should each answer be?
Three to five sentences: state your view, give a reason, add an example or a concession. Long enough to develop the idea, short enough to keep the discussion flowing.
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