Weight Loss Drugs: Availability and Inequality – ESL Lesson Plan

Weight loss jabs have become a global phenomenon. Celebrities are using them, influencers are promoting them, and millions of people are desperate to get their hands on them. But there is a growing problem: those who need these drugs the most are often the least able to afford them. This thought-provoking BBC News video, How weight-loss injections are turning obesity into a wealth issue, explores the rising popularity of weight loss drugs, the sky-high costs, and the two-tier system that is beginning to develop – where the rich can access treatment and the poor are left behind.

Skills students will develop:

• Listening skills practised through a range of comprehension tasks based on an authentic BBC News video
• Vocabulary building through matching exercises (collocations such as weight loss, health insurance, postcode lottery, and clinical trials) and contextual gap-fill tasks (dependent prepositions and phrasal verbs such as pay for, miss out on, lead to, and bring down)
• Oral fluency through pair, group, and whole-class discussion activities on topics such as healthcare fairness, social inequality, and cultural stigma around obesity
• Critical thinking through debating ethical questions, evaluating arguments for and against public healthcare funding, and considering future solutions to the two-tier system
• Research skills through an extension project investigating obesity rates, healthcare access, and weight loss treatments in students’ own countries
• Cross-cultural comparison through comparing their country’s approach to obesity and weight loss treatment with the UK and the US

By the end of the lesson, students will be able to discuss complex social issues with confidence, use key vocabulary and collocations naturally, and express and justify their opinions on a controversial and timely topic.

* This lesson is for educational purposes only and is not intended to provide medical advice. Students should not use this content to make personal health decisions. For any medical concerns or treatment decisions, always consult a qualified healthcare professional.