ENS

Level-graded English lessons with reading, listening, activities, and discussion.

Lesson Info

Type
Article
Level
3 / B1
Published
Title
When Food Thoughts Get in the Way
Webpage
https://eslnewsstories.com/articles/2026-10-08-when-food-thoughts-get-in-the-way/

Lesson Content

Warm-up, Vocab List, Reading and Audio

Understanding: Main Idea, True or False, Multiple Choice

Language: Words That Go Together, New Sentences

Use It: Discussion Builder, Discussion Questions

Answers

Think Ahead: Where do you find it easiest to focus on a task?

a) In a quiet room by myself

b) In a place with some background noise

c) In a room with other people working

A person sits at a desk with an open book, resting their head on one hand and looking toward a thought bubble showing food.
Food on the mind.

Vocab List

food noise (n. phrase) — Repeated thoughts about food that are hard to control and interrupt daily life.
statement (n.) — Something you say or write to express a fact or opinion.
interrupt (v.) — To stop someone from continuing what they are doing.
distract (v.) — To take someone's attention away from what they are doing.
dietitian (n.) — A person trained to give advice about food and healthy eating.
score (n.) — The number of points given for answers in a test or set of questions.
craving (n.) — A strong desire for something, especially a particular food.
maximum (adj.) — As large or high as possible or allowed.
questionnaire (n.) — A written set of questions used to collect information from people.
get in the way (v. phrase) — To make it difficult for someone to do something.
Reading

Thinking about food is not always the same as feeling hungry. For some people, thoughts about food keep returning even when they do not want them, and interrupt daily life. This experience is called “food noise,” and a set of five questions helps show how much these thoughts affect a person.

Dietitian Kristin Kirkpatrick explains that food noise is different from normal hunger. It is connected with strong cravings that are often difficult to ignore. These thoughts can also make healthy habits harder to follow.

The Food Noise Questionnaire asks people to say how much they agree with these five statements:

  • I find myself thinking about food all day.
  • I feel that I cannot control my thoughts about food.
  • I spend too much time thinking about food.
  • My thoughts about food have negative effects on me and/or my life.
  • My thoughts about food distract me from what I need to do.

People choose how much they agree with each statement, from strongly disagree to strongly agree. Each answer gets a score from zero to four, giving a maximum total of 20.

The questions focus on the problems caused by food noise: lost time, difficulty paying attention, and a feeling of lost control. The problem is not simply wanting a snack, but having food thoughts get in the way of daily activities.

When Food Thoughts Get in the Way

Level 3 Article Source: healthline.com
Warm-up → or → Check Understanding → Language → Use It

A person sits at a desk with an open book, resting their head on one hand and looking toward a thought bubble showing food.
Food on the mind.

Thinking about food is not always the same as feeling hungry. For some people, thoughts about food keep returning even when they do not want them, and interrupt daily life. This experience is called “food noise,” and a set of five questions helps show how much these thoughts affect a person.

Dietitian Kristin Kirkpatrick explains that food noise is different from normal hunger. It is connected with strong cravings that are often difficult to ignore. These thoughts can also make healthy habits harder to follow.

The Food Noise Questionnaire asks people to say how much they agree with these five statements:

  • I find myself thinking about food all day.
  • I feel that I cannot control my thoughts about food.
  • I spend too much time thinking about food.
  • My thoughts about food have negative effects on me and/or my life.
  • My thoughts about food distract me from what I need to do.

People choose how much they agree with each statement, from strongly disagree to strongly agree. Each answer gets a score from zero to four, giving a maximum total of 20.

The questions focus on the problems caused by food noise: lost time, difficulty paying attention, and a feeling of lost control. The problem is not simply wanting a snack, but having food thoughts get in the way of daily activities.

Speaker: British Female  Duration: 1:45  YouTube

Listen Closely

Listen and Fill Gaps

Listen to the audio on eslnewsstories.com and complete the gaps below:

Thinking about food is not always the same as feeling hungry. For some people, thoughts about food keep returning even when they do not want them, and (1) daily life. This experience is called “food noise,” and a set of five questions helps show how much these thoughts affect a person.

Dietitian Kristin Kirkpatrick explains that food noise is different from normal hunger. It is connected with strong cravings that are often difficult to ignore. These thoughts can also make (2) habits harder to follow.

The Food Noise Questionnaire asks people to say how much they (3) with these five statements:

I find myself thinking about food all day.

I feel that I cannot (4) my thoughts about food.

I spend too much time thinking about food.

My thoughts about food have negative effects on me and/or my life.

My thoughts about food distract me from what I need to do.

People choose how much they agree with each statement, from strongly disagree to strongly agree. Each (5) gets a score from zero to four, giving a maximum total of 20.

The questions focus on the problems caused by food noise: lost time, difficulty paying (6) , and a feeling of lost control. The problem is not simply wanting a snack, but having food thoughts get in the way of daily activities.

Listen and Fill Gaps

Loading listening activity...

Discussion Builder

  1. Q: What's the difference between wanting a snack and having food thoughts that get in the way of daily life?

    A:

  2. Q: How would you plan a meal for friends who like different foods?

    A:
Use It

Discussion Builder

Choose the best phrase for each gap:

  1. Q: What's the difference between wanting a snack and having food thoughts that get in the way of daily life?

    A: Wanting a snack doesn't stop me from studying, food thoughts that get in the way do.

    but / so / because

    Wanting a snack doesn't stop me from studying, but food thoughts that get in the way do.

  2. Q: How would you plan a meal for friends who like different foods?

    A: I'd ask everyone what foods they like. I'd use their answers to choose a meal with something for each person.

    Then, / Before that,

    I'd ask everyone what foods they like. Then, I'd use their answers to choose a meal with something for each person.

Discussion Questions
  1. What's the difference between wanting a snack and having food thoughts that get in the way of daily life?
  2. How could you help a friend who can't study because they're thinking about food?
  3. Where do you see food advertisements? How do they affect what people want to eat?
  4. What would you ask a dietitian about healthy eating?
  5. Do you enjoy cooking videos or food programmes? Why or why not?
  6. How would you plan a meal for friends who like different foods?
  7. What distracts people from working or studying? What helps you focus?
  8. When is it OK to interrupt someone who's busy? How can you do it politely?
  9. Why does food noise affect some people more than others?
  10. Do you ever get food cravings? What foods do you crave?

Discussion Questions

  1. What's the difference between wanting a snack and having food thoughts that get in the way of daily life?
  2. How could you help a friend who can't study because they're thinking about food?
  3. Where do you see food advertisements? How do they affect what people want to eat?
  4. What would you ask a dietitian about healthy eating?
  5. Do you enjoy cooking videos or food programmes? Why or why not?
  6. How would you plan a meal for friends who like different foods?
  7. What distracts people from working or studying? What helps you focus?
  8. When is it OK to interrupt someone who's busy? How can you do it politely?
  9. Why does food noise affect some people more than others?
  10. Do you ever get food cravings? What foods do you crave?

Answers When Food Thoughts Get in the Way / Level 3

Listening: (1) interrupt, (2) healthy, (3) agree, (4) control, (5) answer, (6) attention

Main Idea: Food noise is best understood by how much it interrupts daily life.

True or False:

  1. True. The story says that unwanted thoughts about food can keep returning and interrupt daily life.
  2. True. Kirkpatrick explains that these cravings are often difficult to ignore and can make healthy habits more difficult.
  3. False. It asks about time spent thinking about food and how those thoughts affect daily life, rather than time spent eating.
  4. False. Each answer can receive four points. Strongly agreeing with all five statements gives a total of 20.

Multiple Choice: a, b, c

Vocabulary:

  1. strong: cravings
  2. healthy: habits
  3. negative: effects
  1. strongly: agree
  2. lose: control

New Sentences: 1. dietitian; 2. craving; 3. questionnaire; 4. statement; 5. score; 6. distract

Discussion Builder:

Hints: 1) Expressing contrast. 2) Sequencing decisions.

  1. but
  2. Then,

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