Last updated: October 20, 2026
Health questions cover lifestyle, diet, healthcare systems, and public health. These words help you explain health problems and what individuals and governments should do about them.
Each word below has a short meaning and an example sentence written for IELTS. The first six are the core words from our IELTS academic vocabulary list, and the other 24 build your range further. Use them in your essays and in your Speaking Part 3 answers.
If you’re looking for free IELTS Writing practice, click the button below to write an essay and get an instant AI score, including a Lexical Resource band.
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Core Health Words
Start with these six. They come up again and again in IELTS questions on this topic.
Sedentary
Involving a lot of sitting and little exercise.
- A sedentary lifestyle is one of the main causes of obesity.
Preventive
Intended to stop something bad from happening.
- Preventive healthcare is cheaper than treating illness later.
Life expectancy
The number of years a person is expected to live.
- Life expectancy has risen thanks to better sanitation and medicine.
Well-being
The state of being healthy and happy.
- Long working hours can harm employees’ mental well-being.
Detrimental
Causing harm or damage.
- Excessive screen time is detrimental to children’s sleep.
Epidemic
A disease or problem that spreads quickly to many people.
- Some experts describe obesity as a modern epidemic.
24 More Health Words
Once you know the core words, these help you add precision and avoid repeating yourself.
Obesity
The condition of being very overweight.
- Childhood obesity has doubled in many countries.
Balanced diet
A diet with the right amounts of different kinds of food.
- A balanced diet reduces the risk of heart disease.
Chronic illness
A disease that lasts for a long time.
- Diabetes is a chronic illness that needs lifelong care.
Healthcare system
The way medical services are organised in a country.
- An ageing population puts pressure on the healthcare system.
Mental health
A person’s emotional and psychological health.
- Schools should offer more support for students’ mental health.
Nutrition
The food needed for health and growth.
- Poor nutrition affects children’s ability to concentrate.
Vaccination
Giving people a vaccine to protect them from a disease.
- Vaccination programmes have eliminated several deadly diseases.
Lifestyle choices
Decisions people make about how they live.
- Smoking and heavy drinking are lifestyle choices that shorten lives.
Physical activity
Movement and exercise.
- Adults need at least 150 minutes of physical activity a week.
Public health
The health of the population as a whole.
- A tax on sugary drinks is a public health measure.
Medical treatment
Care given by doctors to cure an illness.
- Medical treatment should be free for all children.
Symptom
A sign that someone has an illness.
- Tiredness can be an early symptom of many illnesses.
Malnutrition
Poor health caused by not eating enough of the right food.
- Malnutrition is still common in some rural areas.
Stress-related
Caused by stress.
- Stress-related illness is a major reason for absence from work.
Pharmaceutical
Connected with the production of medicines.
- Pharmaceutical companies spend billions developing new drugs.
Affordable healthcare
Medical care that ordinary people can pay for.
- Affordable healthcare should be a basic right.
Hygiene
Keeping yourself and your surroundings clean to prevent disease.
- Good hygiene prevents the spread of infection.
Fitness
The condition of being physically strong and healthy.
- Many people join gyms to improve their fitness.
Diagnose
To identify what illness a person has.
- Doctors can now diagnose many conditions with a simple blood test.
Recover
To become healthy again after an illness.
- Patients recover faster when they have family support.
Junk food
Unhealthy food that is high in fat, sugar, or salt.
- Adverts for junk food should be banned during children’s programmes.
Contagious
Able to spread from one person to another.
- Flu is highly contagious in crowded places.
Burnout
Extreme tiredness caused by working too hard for too long.
- Long hours without breaks can lead to burnout.
Healthy lifestyle
A way of living that keeps you healthy.
- Promoting a healthy lifestyle is cheaper than treating disease.
Using These Words in IELTS Writing
Lexical Resource is a quarter of your Writing band. Examiners look for a range of topic words used accurately and in natural combinations, not for the longest words you know.
- Use a few well, not many badly. Three or four precise words in an essay are worth more than ten forced ones.
- Learn the word with its partners. Note the collocations in each example sentence, such as the verb that goes with a noun.
- Paraphrase the question. Topic words help you restate the question in your introduction without copying it.
Try these words in a real IELTS Writing Task 2 question:
For natural word pairs on this topic, see our IELTS collocations by topic, and to connect your ideas, our IELTS linking words.
Using These Words in IELTS Speaking Part 3
Lexical Resource also counts for a quarter of your Speaking band. Part 3 is where these words fit best: the examiner asks abstract questions about society, causes, and the future, and a precise topic word shows the range that band 7 and above require. In Part 1, everyday words usually sound more natural.
- Use the word in your own sentence. Memorised phrases are easy for examiners to spot.
- Keep the tone conversational. Mix academic words with natural spoken phrases such as “I’d say” and “on top of that”.
- Support every word with an example. A topic word followed by a real example is what develops a Part 3 answer.
Sample Part 3 answer
In some ways yes, but in others I’d say no. Life expectancy is higher, mainly thanks to vaccination and better medical treatment. But our daily routines are far more sedentary than our grandparents’ were, and we eat much more junk food. So overall, I think we live longer, but not necessarily more healthily, especially when it comes to mental health.
The words in bold are from this page. Notice that each one is part of a natural spoken sentence, followed by a reason or an example.
Practise using these words in a real IELTS Speaking Part 3 answer:
For more questions and the answer patterns that fit them, see our IELTS Speaking Part 3 questions.
More IELTS Academic Vocabulary
Each page has 30 words with examples. For the six core words of every topic on one page, see our IELTS academic vocabulary list.
Education Environment Technology Work and the Economy Society and Government Culture and Globalisation Presenting an Argument Cause and Effect Describing Data
Frequently Asked Questions
helpWhat vocabulary do I need for IELTS health topics?expand_moreexpand_less
Learn words for lifestyle, illness, and healthcare, such as sedentary, balanced diet, chronic illness, and preventive healthcare. They cover most health questions in Writing Task 2 and Speaking Part 3.
helpHow can I use health vocabulary in IELTS Speaking?expand_moreexpand_less
Use it in Part 3 questions about lifestyles, healthcare, and public health. Compare the past and the present, and support your view with words such as life expectancy and physical activity.
helpHow do I remember health vocabulary for IELTS?expand_moreexpand_less
Learn each word with an example sentence and the words it is usually used with, review the list a few times a week, and use three or four of the words in every practice essay and Speaking Part 3 answer until they feel natural.