LSAT Explanation PT 22, S4, Q12: Most adults in country X consume

LSAT Question Stem

The statements above, if true, most strongly support which one of the following conclusions about adults in country X? 

Logical Reasoning Question Type

This is a Most Strongly supported question. 

Correct Answer

The correct answer to this question is B. 

LSAT Question Complete Explanation

First, let's analyze the information in the passage. The passage tells us two things about adults in country X:

1) They consume an increasing amount of fat as they grow older.

2) The percentage of fat in their diet stays the same throughout adult life.

To make this more understandable, let's use a simple example. Imagine an adult in country X consumes 10 grams of fat and 40 grams of other food (total 50 grams of food) at age 30. Now, at age 60, they consume 20 grams of fat. Since the percentage of fat in their diet stays the same (10/50 = 20/100), they must now consume 80 grams of other food (total 100 grams of food).

Now, let's identify the question type and what it's asking us to do. This is a Most Strongly Supported (MSS) question, which means we need to find the conclusion that logically follows from the information in the passage.

Let's consider each answer choice:

a) They generally consume more fat than do people of the same age in other countries.

- The passage does not provide information about fat consumption in other countries, so we cannot conclude this.

b) They generally eat more when they are older than they did earlier in their adulthood.

- This conclusion follows from the passage. Since the amount of fat increases and the percentage of fat in their diet stays the same, the overall amount of food consumed must also increase. This is the correct answer.

c) They generally have diets that contain a lower percentage of fat than do the diets of children in country X.

- The passage does not provide information about the diets of children in country X, so we cannot conclude this.

d) They tend to eat more varied kinds of food as they become older.

- The passage only discusses the amount and percentage of fat in their diet, not the variety of foods. We cannot conclude this.

e) They tend to lose weight as they become older.

- Based on the information provided, this seems unlikely. The passage tells us that both fat consumption and overall food consumption increase, so it would be more reasonable to assume that they might gain weight rather than lose it.

In conclusion, the correct answer is (b) They generally eat more when they are older than they did earlier in their adulthood, as this is the conclusion that logically follows from the information in the passage.