Logical reasoning PrepTest 129 · Section 1 · Question 19

Correct. Argument or Facts:
Argument

Valid or Flawed:
Valid

Question Type:
Argument Structure

Stimulus Summary:
Principle - Nutrients are more effective from natural food than supplements
"While" principle - Fat is generally unhealthy
Biology - The body can't turn BC into vitamin A without fat
Conclusion - Eating carrots by themselves isn't a good way to get vitamin A

Answer Anticipation:
Don't be afraid to lean on keywords when you're working your way through an Argument Structure question. Identifying a clear one can unlock the whole argument.

Here, the statement in question is introduced with one keyword, but it's a more complex one—"While" can be a little hard to pin down. Instead, let's start with that "since" which tells us it's introducing a premise that's supporting the statement made in the other part of the sentence.

So a premise in this argument is that the body can't turn beta carotene (BC) into vitamin A if it's consumed without fat, supporting the conclusion that eating carrots by themselves isn't a good way to get vitamin A, despite being rich in BC.

The opening statement is presented as something that "is true," so that's a premise as well, and the second statement (the statement in question) states that something is "also true," so it's serving the same function as the first statement. These seem to be premises, but "While" generally introduces a caveat or a concession to an opposing point, which is missing here, so let's compare these two statements to the main point to see how they line up.

The main point, again, is that carrots by themselves aren't a good source of vitamin A. How does the opening line play into that? Well, it's a general rule about foods that states nutrients from natural foods are particularly effective, but then we get a conclusion about a natural food that includes nutrients that aren't particularly effective without fat. And then the second statement—the statement in question, "While . . . "—brings up that fat is "generally" unhealthy, before it goes into an example where some fat needs to be consumed in order to get vitamin A from BC.

So the statement in question brings up a limit on how much fat you should eat (less), but the example brings up a situation where you should eat some fat, so there seems to be a "sweet spot" that's relatively low for fat consumption, based on the statement in question (upper limit) and additional consideration (lower limit).

Answer Explanation:
The argument, overall, suggests limiting fat intake so that you don't eat too much ("generally unhealthy") while still getting enough to allow for BC to get converted to vitamin A. So the statement in question provides a reason for limiting the fat intake, but not carrying it to the extreme of eating no fat as that will negatively impact your vitamin A levels. This answer is therefore correct.

Key Takeaway:
Harder Argument Structure questions will phrase the answer choice in a way that makes it difficult to understand what it's saying and match it up with the stimulus. Take it one piece at a time, see if the concept matches up with something from the stimulus, and then reread the answer with those abstract words substituted with the concepts from the argument itself. This makes the analysis a lot easier.

Incorrect. There's no other viewpoint mentioned, nor a discussion of how frequently different things are cited, so this answer is out of scope for two reasons.

Incorrect. The Dietitian doesn't undermine this view completely—she says that it is "true." She just limits it so that someone doesn't take it to the extreme, which creates different problems (around vitamin absorption).

Incorrect. It's not attacked, and it's also not provided as support for the opening line. You can tell this is the case because the argument says that the statement in question is "also" true, making it run parallel to the first statement instead of subordinate to it.

Incorrect. The Dietitian wants you to eat some fat with carrots to help generate vitamin A, but she also thinks it's true that fat is generally unhealthy, so she doesn't think the statement in question is a bad reason to minimize fat consumption.