IELTS Writing Task 2 Tips - Problems and Solutions

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There are so many types of questions for IELTS Writing Task 2. Sometimes, you have to agree or disagree with certain topic. Sometimes, you have to explain advantage and disadvantage, or benefits and harm, or positive and negative impacts of something. Sometimes, you have to agree or disagree at certain extent. Sometimes, you are asked to identify a problem and the causes, as well as giving some solutions. We normally do Writing Task 2 differently, depending on what question is being given. Today, we are going to try to write an essay by identifying a problem and giving some solutions. Take a look at the topic and questions below!

Overweight is a common problem in many countries. It causes health problems and reduces the fitness level. What are the causes of this problem and what needs to be done to overcome it?

Give reasons for you answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge and experience

It is good to think about the arrangement of ideas before you start writing you essay. Because we are asked to identify a problem and provide some solutions, our essay will probably look like this:

Paragraph 1 - Overview

Paragraph 2 - What the problem is and what causes that problem

Paragraph 3 - Solutions for the problem

Paragraph 4 - Conclusion

Sample Writing
Obesity has become a global phenomenon, causing health problems and hampering the quality of life of many citizens. This essay will examine the main causes of obesity and formulate some solutions for the problems.

The main reasons why people become obese are the lack of physical exercise and the consumption of unhealthy food. When people are reluctant to do physical activities at least two or three times a week, they become less fit and end up storing a lot of body fat. The excessive fat can cause serious illness like diabetes and heart attack. People should work out regularly so that they can be more healthy and have lower risk of getting ill. In the case of many office workers, there is not much time for hitting the gym or at least jogging in the morning. They have to go to work early and when they get home from work, they are already too tired to do exercise. This becomes even worse when people have to spend considerable time sitting in their chair, doing mundane work, and end up being stressed out. This poses them to even greater risk of serious illness like kidney and depression. Moreover, the consumption of fast food also becomes the main reason why people become obese. Fast food does not contain nutrients needed by our body and instead, contains a lot of sugar, saturated fat and preservatives. When there is an imbalance in the consumption of carbohydrate, fat, protein and fiber, the body will not function normally. For instance, the lack of dietary fiber may cause problems with digestive system.

There are some possible solutions that will help people become more fit and healthy. Firstly, they will have to start living a healthy life style. This can be done by having a healthy diet, doing regular exercise and stopping bad habits like late night snacking, sleep over, smoking, alcohol consumption and some other habits that will most likely be bad for health. Intermittent fasting is believed to be a good way of maintaining a healthy body. If intermittent fasting sounds too extreme, people can eat more vegetable and fruit and drink a lot of water. Since obesity is often caused by the lack of physical activities, people can find some alternative to daily exercise like yoga or pilates. These exercise can be done at home. Playing basketball during the weekend is also a good way of keeping fir, and it can be done with family and friends so it is more like a healthy leisure activity rather excruciating physical exercise. All the people need is the commitment to work out regularly.

To conclude, there are many factors why people become obese. We can reduce the risk of being less fit and unhealthy by avoiding unhealthy habit and start a healthy lifestyle. Unhealthy diet and lack of exercise are the main cause of obesity, so it is important for the people to have healthy diet and work out regularly.




Take a look at the underlined sentences. The last sentence of paragraph 1 determines what we will explain the in next two paragraphs, which are the causes of the problems and the solutions. Since it is not possible to provide solution without understanding the causes of the problems, the causes have to explained first. In paragraph two, the main idea is in the first sentence. This sentence is then elaborated by some relevant explanation. It is the same case with paragraph three. I put the main idea in the first sentence, and then I give some additional explanation.