Sad stories

Tomek, 15

My sister is 27 now but she can’t live on her own (sama). When she was in a high school she started loosing her weight (tracić wagę). I don’t remember my sister healthy. At the beginning she told them she was so thin because of the stress at school. After she tried to kill herself (próbowała się zabić) she was taken to hospital. She was 22. The doctors said she had anorexia. My parents were terrified (przerażeni)! She always thought she was far too fat (za gruba). Finally she had to go to a hospital. She spent one year there, she had therapy (terapia) and she put on weight (przytyć). Now she still has problems and we know that when she starts a diet or when she spends hours on working out (ćwiczyć) in her room, we have to have an eye on her. Both of my parents are tired and very sad all the time. I try to be strong but seeing my family so unhappy doesn’t help.

Jola, 15

People think that if you have asthma, you are very sick. My dad has had asthma for 40 years. He’s never been a sick person really. He does all the things that a healthy person can do. He has to spend lots of money on medicines and he visits a doctor every month but apart from that (poza tym) he is a normal man. He loves sport and whenever (kiedykolwiek) he has an opportunity he swims and rides a bike. On the other hand he is a very careful (ostrożny) person. He doesn’t leave the house when there is a lot of pollen (pyłki) in the air. Attacks of asthma are very painful (bolesne) and my mum had to take a special course on how to help him during such an attack. He is OK with his illness (choroba) because he has my mum.

Magda, 14

I love playing with my younger brother but when somebody hears he has Down syndrome (zespół Downa), they are terrified. When my brother was born, the diagnosis (diagnoza) was – Down syndrome. It’s very difficult for a couple to learn that they will have a disabled kid (niepełnosprawne dziecko). But my parents are fantastic people. They thank God every day that they have got my brother. He needs a lot of attention (uwaga) as well as special teaching. That’s why he lives in a boarding school (internat) during the week and he spends weekends at home. He’s doing well and he is with people who are in a similar situations. I love my brother very much and we communicate with him with no problem but there are still people who can’t accept him. When we go for holidays we are always ‘an attraction’. And it really hurts us when we can hear ‘Look, what a monster’.

Jacek, 13

We live in a small village and my family can’t be at the hospital every day. That’s why we don’t see my sister as often as we want to. She has cancer (rak), leukemia (białaczka). Doctors say that we have to realize she won’t live as long as we wanted her to. She’s had a few chemotherapy treatments (chemioterapia) but everything comes back very quickly. She lost her hair and she can’t go to school. My mum is in a very bad state as well. My dad never says anything but he suffers (on cierpi) a lot. My sister has been in a hospital for about two years. I have two other sisters and a brother but we are not a real family any more. Sometimes I think that life is very unfair (niesprawiedliwe).

 

Zadanie 1.

Gap filling

Wstaw słowa z tabelki w odpowiednie luki.

May; be; eat; contains; eat; spend; doesn’t; know.

Junk food

Junk food typically contains high levels of fat, salt or sugar and huge number food additives. It ____________ (1) contain many proteins, vitamins or fibre.

Nowadays it is very popular. People ___________(2) it’s not the healthiest way of eating but it is cheap and very often you don’t have to put it into the fridge. What’s more, you don’t have to __________(3) hours on preparation! And what is the most important, it has lots of flavour.

Unfortunately, people who ___________(4) a lot of junk food (and there are people who eat only this kind of food) may suffer from obesity, heart disease, diabetes and dental problems.
Remember that as junk food we include not only hamburgers and chips, but also pizza, ready made meals and all the food which __________(5) additives like cakes and cookies (too much sugar!), cola’s (sugar and caffeine), ice cream (sugar and fats), imitation fruit drinks (sugar and water with artificial flavours) and finally potato chips (lots of salt and fats).

_________(6) careful! Scientists warn that sometimes there are traps! For example breakfast cereals are said to be healthy but they _________(7) be full of sugar, salt and fat as well. Always pay attention to what you ___________(8) to keep your body healthy.

Odpowiedzi
1 – doesn’t; 2 – know; 3 – spend; 4 – eat; 5 – contains; 6 – be; 7 – may; 8 – eat.

 

Zadanie 2.

Healthy aromatherapy

After the winter time everybody feels tired. We don’t get enough sunlight, the food is boring and our body gets sluggish. We can’t wait when spring comes! Unfortunately, when flowers start blooming, birds singing and bees buzzing, we feel tired and even depressed. Is there any other way to cope with spring breakdown than a packet of vitamin pills?
Yes, there is! There are two plants which essential oils are able to help you to enjoy your life.

Basil – is best known as a culinary herb. You can easily grow it in your garden or in a plant pot in your flat. It’s a very powerful plant and not only in giving a particular fresh taste to a dish. In Greek basil means ‘royal remedy’ because it has medical properties. The essential oil of basil refreshes your body and helps it to regenerate.

Rosemary – as basil is used in our kitchens but its oils can be used to get the body and the mind ready for action. In ancient Greece and Rome, students used to wear rosemary during exams to energise their memories and strengthen their minds.
Both of these essential oils can be used during massage or in a therapeutic bath.

Think also about almond or avocado oils which are fantastic especially when used in an oil vaporiser or as massage oil. And don’t forget about peppermint oil which brings life to sluggish bodies as well.
So don’t let a bad mood rule your life! Enjoy spring time with a little bit of help from nature.

True or false

Zdecyduj, które zdania z tabelki są prawdziwe (true), a które fałszywe (false).

1 You can’t use basil while cooking. true false
2 Basil can be grown in your flat. true false
3 Rosemary means ‘royal remedy’ in Greek. true false
4 Rosemary is not used nowadays. true false
5 Massage oil can be made also true false
of avocado and almond. true false

Odpowiedzi
1 – false; 2 – true; 3 – false; 4 – false; 5 – true.

 

Zadanie 2.

Wstaw wycięte zdania tak, aby cały tekst miał sens.

  • You can also find many chemicals in this kind of food
  • …you’ve eaten fast food, you throw away the packaging
  • …forest have been cut down to create soya farms…
  • …everything can be genetically modified…
  • …many people love going to fast food restaurants…
  • You can buy a fresh tomato in Paris that came from Cyprus…

 

The age of junk food

We all know that junk food is not very healthy. This food has lots of different additives and it may ”help” you to put on weight. Anyway, …1…, they like chips, crisps and they can’t resist when they see a beautiful ready-made dish in a supermarket. Do we live in an age of junk food?

Not only may you become overweight if your diet consists of junk food. …2…. Here are just two examples: Chlorine is used to make bread white, Cochineal (made from dried insects) is used to make things red. Scientists still don’t how many of those chemicals can affect our health but one thing is certain: they are not good for us.

Fast food is not only unhealthy. It can be also a problem to the environment because when …3…. Fast food also contributes to global warming! How? If there are fewer forests, there’s more global warming. In Brazil, 12 million acres of …4…. Soya is what cows eat and cows become the beef in your hamburger.

Fast food is supposed to be ”better food”. It’s tasty, can be quickly prepared and it’s really cheap. It would be perfect! Unfortunately, many ingredients in fast food dishes are genetically modified. …5… and it still will be fresh after two or even three weeks. It’s thanks to the scientists. Meat, vegetables, flour… – …6…. Sometimes it’s not so bad. Some food is modified to provide more vitamins for example. But is it 100% good for you?

Odpowiedzi

1 – many people love going to fast food restaurants
2 – You can also find many chemicals in this kind of food
3 – you’ve eaten fast food, you throw away the packaging
4 – forest have been cut down to create soya farms
5 – You can buy a fresh tomato in Paris that came from Cyprus
6 – everything can be genetically modified