The Reading / Listening - Heart Attacks - Level 2

Doctors say people can avoid cardiovascular diseases like heart attacks and strokes. These are the leading causes of death. A study from doctors in Chicago and in South Korea said that more than 99 per cent of people who had a heart attack or stroke had at least one warning sign. The doctors said there were some big signs of these, like high blood pressure, cholesterol, high blood sugar, and smoking and drinking. People can reduce all of these things if they change their lifestyles. The most effective changes are to eat a healthier diet, to exercise, and to quit smoking and drinking.

In the study, doctors analyzed 10 years of health records of more than nine million people. Nearly all of these patients could have stopped a heart attack. A researcher said: "We have known for many years that there is a small number of [changeable] risk factors for heart disease, and…often more than one is present…leading up to heart attacks, heart failure, or strokes." He said we needed to treat the factors that lead to heart attack, stroke, or heart failure. The researcher said the goal was to work on finding ways to control risk factors.

Try the same news story at these levels:

    Heart Attacks - Level 0 Heart Attacks - Level 1   or  Heart Attacks - Level 3

Sources
  • https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-09-factor-heart-failure-large-scale.html
  • https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/heart-attack-stroke-heart-failure-linked-to-preventable-risk-factors
  • https://edition.cnn.com/2025/09/29/health/heart-disease-risk-factors-wellness


Make sure you try all of the online activities for this reading and listening - There are dictations, multiple choice activities, drag and drop activities, sentence jumbles, which word activities, text reconstructions, spelling, gap fills and a whole lot more. Please enjoy :-)

Phrase Matching

Paragraph 1

  1. people can avoid
  2. These are the leading causes
  3. at least one warning
  4. high blood
  5. People can reduce all
  6. if they change
  7. eat a healthier
  8. quit
  1. diet
  2. pressure
  3. of death
  4. their lifestyles
  5. cardiovascular diseases
  6. sign
  7. smoking and drinking
  8. of these things

Paragraph 2

  1. doctors analyzed 10 years
  2. patients could have stopped
  3. We have known for
  4. there is a small
  5. often more than one is
  6. leading up
  7. factors that lead
  8. finding ways to
  1. a heart attack
  2. to heart attack
  3. control risk factors
  4. present
  5. of health records
  6. number
  7. to heart attacks
  8. many years

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

Doctors say (1) _________________________________________________ cardiovascular diseases like heart attacks and strokes. These are the leading (2) _________________________________________________. A study from doctors in Chicago and in South Korea said that more than 99 per cent of people who had a heart attack or stroke had (3) _________________________________________________ warning sign. The doctors said there were some big signs of these, like high blood pressure, cholesterol, (4) _________________________________________________, and smoking and drinking. People can (5) ________________________________________________ these things if they change their lifestyles. The most effective changes are to eat a healthier diet, to exercise, (6) _______________________________________________ smoking and drinking.

(7) _________________________________________________, doctors analyzed 10 years of health records of more than nine million people. (8) _________________________________________________ these patients could have stopped a heart attack. A researcher said: "We (9) _________________________________________________ many years that there is a small number of [changeable] risk factors for heart disease, and...often more than one is present...(10) _________________________________________________ heart attacks, heart failure, or strokes." He said we needed to treat the factors (11) _________________________________________________ heart attack, stroke, or heart failure. The researcher said the goal was to work (12) _________________________________________________ to control risk factors.

Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

Doctorssaypeoplecanavoidcardiovasculardiseaseslikeheartattacksa
ndstrokes.Thesearetheleadingcausesofdeath.Astudyfromdoctorsin
ChicagoandinSouthKoreasaidthatmorethan99percentofpeoplewho
hadaheartattackorstrokehadatleastonewarningsign.Thedoctorssai
dthereweresomebigsignsofthese,likehighbloodpressure,cholesterol
,highbloodsugar,andsmokinganddrinking.Peoplecanreduceallofthe
sethingsiftheychangetheirlifestyles.Themosteffectivechangesareto
eatahealthierdiet,toexercise,andtoquitsmokinganddrinking.Inthest
udy,doctorsanalyzed10yearsofhealthrecordsofmorethanninemillio
npeople.Nearlyallofthesepatientscouldhavestoppedaheartattack.Ar
esearchersaid:"Wehaveknownformanyyearsthatthereisasmallnum
berof[changeable]riskfactorsforheartdisease,and...oftenmorethan
oneispresent...leadinguptoheartattacks,heartfailure,orstrokes."He
saidweneededtotreatthefactorsthatleadtoheartattack,stroke,orhea
rtfailure.Theresearchersaidthegoalwastoworkonfindingwaystocontr
olriskfactors.

Student survey

Write five GOOD questions about this topic 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.

(Please look at page 12 of the PDF to see a photocopiable example of this activity.)

Discussion — Write your own questions

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

(a) ________________

(b) ________________

(c) ________________

(d) ________________

(e) ________________

(f) ________________

(g) ________________

(h) ________________

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

(i) ________________

(j) ________________

(k) ________________

(l) ________________

(m) ________________

(n) ________________

(o) ________________

(p) ________________

Free writing

Write about this topic for 10 minutes. Comment on your partner’s paper.

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_____________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

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Answers

(Please check your answers against the article above.

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