In many countries around the world, life expectancy is increasing.

Write about the following topic:

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

Write at least 250 words.

Model answer

Medical care over the past century has improved dramatically. Consequently, the world’s population is increasingly living Long into old age. Is this hurting societies across the globe, or are there more benefits than drawbacks?

One obvious issue with an ageing population is that it can create enormous demands on a nation’s health service. As people live longer into their old age, their chances of suffering from severe illnesses increase. As a result, the likelihood of them requiring medical treatment becomes higher, making it more challenging to provide care for everyone. A further downside is that living longer does not necessarily bring happiness. By this I mean an older person is unable to do many of the activities they want to do, leading to the likelihood of depression and a deterioration in their physical health.

One obvious benefit to people living longer is that young people can benefit for a long time from the wisdom handed down to them by older members of their families. In today’s fast-paced world, it is often comforting to seek advice from older generations. Consequently, the physical health of a grandparent is almost irrelevant, as the children and grandchildren will benefit from the experience of an older mind. Additionally, retired people today are generally much healthier than ever and often enjoy their lives more than they did when they were young. They have the best of both worlds – a family that can care for and look up to them and better health than at any time in human history.

Weighing up both sides of the argument again, although there are a number of problems that old age brings – predominantly health-related – the benefits that it brings to the family unit and society are impossible to ignore.

(313 words)