Breaking News English ESL Lesson Plan on Mediterranean Diet

People who follow a Mediterranean diet are likely to be happier in life. This is the conclusion of a new report published in the journal ‘Archives of General Psychiatry’. The study’s authors say a diet that is rich in vegetables, fruits, nuts, whole grains and fish seems to make people less likely to develop depression. This may explain why people who live in Mediterranean countries are more laid back than other Europeans. There are fewer mental disorders in Mediterranean countries and scientists believe this could be because of the diet. The new research supports previous studies that suggested olive oil protects against depression. No Italian, Spanish or Greek meal is complete without olive oil.

Researchers from Spain’s University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria and the Clinic of the University of Navarra, Pamplona asked 10,000 people to keep track of what they ate. The scientists observed dietary habits and instances of depression for four years. They discovered there was a thirty per cent lower risk of developing depression in people who stuck to the Mediterranean diet. The research team says it is still unsure why this diet reduces the likelihood of depression. They said the diet could boost blood vessel performance and increase the body’s efficiency to produce oxygen. Both these things make the brain and heart perform better. If our mind and body are healthier, it seems natural we will be happier.

WARM-UPS

1. MEDITERRANEAN FOOD: Talk to other students about Mediterranean food. Change partners often. Sit with your first partner(s) and share your findings.

2. CHAT: In pairs / groups, decide which of these topics or words from the article are most interesting and which are most boring.

following diets / being happy / depression / laid back / mental disorders / olive oil / universities / dietary habits / blood vessels / the brain / the heart / being healthier

Have a chat about the topics you liked. Change topics and partners frequently.

3. NATIONAL DIET: Do all countries eat healthily? Complete this table with your partner(s). Change partners and share what you heard. Change again.

National diet	Your image of this diet	Healthy / Unhealthy
Italy
USA
Japan
Lebanon
England
India

4. YOU ARE WHAT YOU EAT: Students A strongly believe you are what you eat (if you eat healthily, your mind will be healthy); Students B strongly believe food does not affect your brain. Change partners again and talk about your conversations.

5. DEPRESSION: What can stop depression? Rate these and share your ratings with your partner: 10 = would definitely stop depression; 1 = would have zero impact on depression. Change partners and share your ratings again.

_____ food

_____ money

_____ English level

_____ friends

_____ weather

_____ news

_____ television

_____ work

6. DIET: Spend one minute writing down all of the different words you associate with the word ‘diet’. Share your words with your partner(s) and talk about them. Together, put the words into different categories.

BEFORE READING / LISTENING

1. TRUE / FALSE: Read the headline. Guess if a-h below are true (T) or false (F).

a.	People who eat lots of Mediterranean food are generally miserable.	T / F
b.	Researchers said you need to be rich to eat lots of whole grain food.	T / F
c.	Those in Mediterranean countries are the most depressed Europeans.	T / F
d.	The writer says live oil is needed with meals in Italy, Spain and Greece.	T / F
e.	Scientists studied 10,000 people for about four years.	T / F
f.	A Mediterranean diet can reduce the risk of depression by 30%.	T / F
g.	Scientists say the diet reduces depression because it is low in fats.	T / F
h.	The authors say the diet can have a bad effect on our blood vessels.	T / F

2. SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article.

1.	follow	a.	probable
2	published	b.	improve
3.	likely	c.	eating
4.	laid back	d.	uncertain
5.	complete	e.	stick to
6.	keep track of	f.	finished
7.	dietary	g.	work
8.	unsure	h.	printed
9.	boost	i.	note down
10.	perform	j.	relaxed

3. PHRASE MATCH: (Sometimes more than one choice is possible.)

1.	People who follow	a.	develop depression
2	a diet that is rich	b.	developing depression
3.	less likely to	c.	against depression
4.	more laid back	d.	what they ate
5.	olive oil protects	e.	habits
6.	keep track of	f.	a Mediterranean diet
7.	scientists observed dietary	g.	of depression
8.	a thirty per cent lower risk of	h.	in vegetables
9.	reduces the likelihood	i.	to produce oxygen
10.	increase the body’s efficiency	j.	than other Europeans

WHILE READING / LISTENING

GAP FILL: Put the words into the gaps in the text.

People who follow a Mediterranean diet are ____________ to be happier in life. This is the conclusion of a new report published in the journal ‘Archives of General Psychiatry’. The study’s ____________ say a diet that is rich in vegetables, fruits, nuts, ____________ grains and fish seems to make people less likely to develop depression. This may ____________ why people who live in Mediterranean countries are more laid back than other Europeans. There are fewer ____________ disorders in Mediterranean countries and scientists believe this could be because of the diet. The new research supports ____________ studies that suggested olive oil ____________ against depression. No Italian, Spanish or Greek meal is ____________ without olive oil.

mental
whole
complete
likely
previous
protects
authors
explain

Researchers from Spain’s University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria and the Clinic of the University of Navarra, Pamplona asked 10,000 people to keep ____________ of what they ate. The scientists observed dietary ____________ and instances of depression for four years. They discovered there was a thirty per cent lower ____________ of developing depression in people who ____________ to the Mediterranean diet. The research team says it is still ____________ why this diet reduces the likelihood of depression. They said the diet could boost ____________ vessel performance and increase the body’s efficiency to produce oxygen. Both these things make the brain and heart ____________ better. If our mind and body are healthier, it seems ____________ we will be happier.

unsure
risk
track
perform
blood
natural
habits
stuck

LISTENING – Listen and fill in the gaps

People who follow a Mediterranean diet _______________ happier in life. This is the conclusion of a new report published in the journal ‘Archives of General Psychiatry’. The study’s authors say a diet _______________ vegetables, fruits, nuts, whole grains and fish seems to make people less likely to develop depression. This _______________ people who live in Mediterranean countries are _______________ than other Europeans. There are fewer mental disorders in Mediterranean countries and scientists believe _______________ because of the diet. The new research supports previous studies that suggested olive _______________ depression. No Italian, Spanish or Greek meal is complete without olive oil.

Researchers from Spain’s University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria and the Clinic of the University of Navarra, Pamplona asked 10,000 _______________ track of what they ate. The scientists _______________ habits and instances of depression for four years. They discovered there was a thirty per cent _______________ developing depression in people who stuck to the Mediterranean diet. The research team says _______________ why this diet reduces the likelihood of depression. They said the diet could _________________ performance and increase the body’s efficiency to produce oxygen. Both these things make the brain and heart perform better. If our mind and body are healthier, it _______________ will be happier.

AFTER READING / LISTENING

1. WORD SEARCH: Look in your dictionary / computer to find collocates, other meanings, information, synonyms … for the words ‘olive’ and ‘oil’.

olive

oil

Share your findings with your partners.

Make questions using the words you found.
Ask your partner / group your questions.

2. ARTICLE QUESTIONS: Look back at the article and write down some questions you would like to ask the class about the text.

Share your questions with other classmates / groups.
Ask your partner / group your questions.

3. GAP FILL: In pairs / groups, compare your answers to this exercise. Check your answers. Talk about the words from the activity. Were they new, interesting, worth learning…?

4. VOCABULARY: Circle any words you do not understand. In groups, pool unknown words and use dictionaries to find their meanings.

5. TEST EACH OTHER: Look at the words below. With your partner, try to recall how they were used in the text:

follow
report
rich
laid
mental
complete

track
dietary
stuck
unsure
boost
natural

STUDENT MEDITERRANEAN FOOD SURVEY

Write five GOOD questions about Mediterranean food in the table. Do this in pairs. Each student must write the questions on his / her own paper.

When you have finished, interview other students. Write down their answers.

	STUDENT 1 _____________	STUDENT 2 _____________	STUDENT 3 _____________
Q.1.
Q.2.
Q.3.
Q.4.
Q.5.

Now return to your original partner and share and talk about what you found out. Change partners often.
Make mini-presentations to other groups on your findings.

MEDITERRANEAN FOOD DISCUSSION

STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)

a)	What did you think when you read the headline?
b)	What springs to mind when you hear the word ‘diet’?
c)	What do you think about what you read? Was there anything surprising?
d)	Have you ever followed a diet?
e)	How would you describe your current diet?
f)	Do you think people in Mediterranean countries are more laid back?
g)	Do you think there’s a link between food and happiness?
h)	Do you think the kind of food you eat can lead to depression?
i)	What food do you eat when you are unhappy? Is this healthy
j)	How healthy is your country’s national food?

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)

a)	Did you like reading this article?
b)	Would you like to take part in a scientific test and track the food you eat?
c)	Have you ever been depressed?
d)	How does the food you eat change your feelings?
e)	What do you know about depression?
f)	Which country’s food do you think is healthiest?
g)	What do you know about Mediterranean food?
h)	How do you make your brain and heart perform better?
i)	Is there anything better than food to make you happier?
j)	What questions would you like to ask the researchers?

LANGUAGE – MULTIPLE CHOICE

People who follow a Mediterranean diet are (1) ____ to be happier in life. This is the conclusion of a new (2) ____ published in the journal ‘Archives of General Psychiatry’. The study’s authors say a diet that is rich in vegetables, fruits, nuts, whole grains and fish seems to make people (3) ____ likely to develop depression. This may explain why people who live in Mediterranean countries are more laid (4) ____ than other Europeans. There are fewer mental disorders in Mediterranean countries and scientists believe this could be (5) ____ of the diet. The new research supports previous studies that suggested olive oil protects against depression. No Italian, Spanish or Greek meal is (6) ____ without olive oil.

Researchers from Spain’s University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria and the Clinic of the University of Navarra, Pamplona (7) ____ 10,000 people to keep track of what they ate. The scientists observed dietary habits and instances of depression for four years. They (8) ____ there was a thirty per cent lower risk of developing depression in people who stuck to the Mediterranean diet. The research team says it is still (9) ____ why this diet reduces the likelihood of depression. They said the diet could (10) ____ blood vessel performance and increase the body’s efficiency to produce oxygen. Both these things (11) ____ the brain and heart perform better. If our mind and body are healthier, it seems (12) ____ we will be happier.

Put the correct words from the table below in the above article.

1.	(a)	liked	(b)	likeliest	(c)	liking	(d)	likely
2.	(a)	reporting	(b)	report	(c)	reported	(d)	reports
3.	(a)	less	(b)	few	(c)	little	(d)	low
4.	(a)	front	(b)	down	(c)	back	(d)	up
5.	(a)	due	(b)	for	(c)	because	(d)	that
6.	(a)	completion	(b)	complete	(c)	completes	(d)	completing
7.	(a)	asked	(b)	said	(c)	ordered	(d)	spoke
8.	(a)	discovery	(b)	discoverer	(c)	discovers	(d)	discovered
9.	(a)	unrest	(b)	unsure	(c)	unease	(d)	unbelievable
10.	(a)	boast	(b)	beast	(c)	blast	(d)	boost
11.	(a)	do	(b)	have	(c)	make	(d)	be
12.	(a)	natural	(b)	naturally	(c)	naturals	(d)	naturalize

WRITING

Write about Mediterranean food for 10 minutes. Correct your partner’s paper.

_____________________________________________________________________________

HOMEWORK

1. VOCABULARY EXTENSION: Choose several of the words from the text. Use a dictionary or Google’s search field (or another search engine) to build up more associations / collocations of each word.

2. INTERNET: Search the Internet and find out more about Mediterranean food. Share what you discover with your partner(s) in the next lesson.

3. MEDITERRANEAN FOOD: Make a poster about Mediterranean food. Show the differences between countries. Show your work to your classmates in the next lesson. Did you all have similar things?

4. DEPRESSION: Write a magazine article called “You are what you eat”. Write about how diet affects your mental health. Include imaginary interviews with doctor and someone who is overweight.

Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Write down any new words and expressions you hear from your partner(s).

5. LETTER: Write a letter to a dietician. Ask him/her three questions about your country’s diet. Give him/her three suggestions on how to make your country’s food healthier. Read your letter to your partner(s) in your next lesson. Your partner(s) will answer your questions.

ANSWERS

TRUE / FALSE:

SYNONYM MATCH:

1.	follow	a.	stick to
2	published	b.	printed
3.	likely	c.	probable
4.	laid back	d.	relaxed
5.	complete	e.	finished
6.	keep track of	f.	note down
7.	dietary	g.	eating
8.	unsure	h.	uncertain
9.	boost	i.	improve
10.	perform	j.	work

PHRASE MATCH:

1.	People who follow	a.	a Mediterranean diet
2	a diet that is rich	b.	in vegetables
3.	less likely to	c.	develop depression
4.	more laid back	d.	than other Europeans
5.	olive oil protects	e.	against depression
6.	keep track of	f.	what they ate
7.	scientists observed dietary	g.	habits
8.	a thirty per cent lower risk of	h.	developing depression
9.	reduces the likelihood	i.	of depression
10.	increase the body’s efficiency	j.	to produce oxygen

GAP FILL:

Mediterranean diets keep you happier

People who follow a Mediterranean diet are likely to be happier in life. This is the conclusion of a new report published in the journal ‘Archives of General Psychiatry’. The study’s authors say a diet that is rich in vegetables, fruits, nuts, whole grains and fish seems to make people less likely to develop depression. This may explain why people who live in Mediterranean countries are more laid back than other Europeans. There are fewer mental disorders in Mediterranean countries and scientists believe this could be because of the diet. The new research supports previous studies that suggested olive oil protects against depression. No Italian, Spanish or Greek meal is complete without olive oil.

Researchers from Spain’s University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria and the Clinic of the University of Navarra, Pamplona asked 10,000 people to keep track of what they ate. The scientists observed dietary habits and instances of depression for four years. They discovered there was a thirty per cent lower risk of developing depression in people who stuck to the Mediterranean diet. The research team says it is still unsure why this diet reduces the likelihood of depression. They said the diet could boost blood vessel performance and increase the body’s efficiency to produce oxygen. Both these things make the brain and heart perform better. If our mind and body are healthier, it seems natural we will be happier.

LANGUAGE WORK

1 - d

2 - b

3 - a

4 - c

5 - c

6 - b

7 - a

8 - d

9 - b

10 - d

11 - c

12 - a

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Breaking News English

October 7, 2009

Mediterranean Diets Keep You Happier