There are some habits that are detrimental to your health over time. These habits affect your health slowly, and you only realize when it is probably too late. Some of them are life’s simple pleasures thereby concealing them in obscurity. If eating junk food, smoking, drinking too much alcohol and lack of exercise come to mind then you are already aware of some unhealthy habits. They develop after years of neglecting your body and usually go unnoticed until tragedy strikes. In case you are already there, it is never too late to change your lifestyle and improve your health. However, why wait until your health deteriorates when you can find out which habits make you unhealthy and turn your life around? Below are some of life habit’s that are making you unhealthy and perhaps are difficult to let go.
1Eating Food Just Before You Go To Bed
You may be the type of a person that likes to snack while in bed watching a movie. It may seem like an innocuous habit but eating food before bed disrupts you sleeping pattern. Eating too close to bedtime may cause bloating which makes sleeping comfortably difficult. Additionally, it can cause stomach discomfort for those with gastrointestinal reflux disease. Having a meal, especially a fatty meal and going to bed immediately may also cause weight gain. The weight gain is attributed to your slowed metabolism when you fall asleep. To correct this, try and eat 3 hours or more before going to bed since your stomach takes about 3 hours or so to fully digest what you have eaten. If you have to eat close to your bedtime, then snacks that absorb quickly or fruits are recommended.
2Failure to Drink Enough Water
You do not need any more information on the importance of drinking water. However, you need to realize the risk of not drinking enough water to ensure your body functions optimally. Close to two-thirds of the human body is water. If your body loses water, you will start to notice the effects almost right away. However, what you do not know is that by the time your body is letting you know that you are thirsty and need water, the damage of not taking enough water has already begun. If the dehydration persists, you may start to feel fatigued, light headed, usual body temperature, constipated. Long term effects include digestive problems, accelerated aging due to dry skin and reduction in muscle mass. Drink water every chance you get. Don’t wait until you start feeling thirsty.
3Too Much Screen Time
Loads of screen time may be blamed on technological advancement. Particularly with the use of PCs at work and watching a large television screen at home. When you are glued to your TV, you miss out on the physical activity that your body requires to keep fit and stay healthy. This increases your chances of being overweight since most people nowadays snack and eat junk while watching TV. A study of 9000 people indicated that those who had more than 2 hour screen time a day ate sugary soft drinks, high calorie and fatty foods than those who watched less. Minimize your screen time to just a few hours a day. Instead of sitting in and watching television for 5-6 hours, watch it for 2 hours and spend the rest of the time chatting with friends or enjoying your hobby.
4Sitting All Day
Nowadays, there are more jobs where you sit down for 5 hours plus than 4-5 decades ago. Several health experts have advised against sitting for longs. They dubbed prolonged sitting as ‘the new smoking’ since it slowly hurts your back and increases your risk for heart diseases and diabetes. Such a sedentary lifestyle is harmful to your health and in the long term will affect your body posture. Make a point walking around and stretching. Take regular short breaks from sitting and exercise after a long day sitting. Yoga is recommended.
5Skipping Breakfast
Breaking fast! That is what breakfast basically does after several hours without eating anything. No meal is as important as breakfast. Never miss breakfast. Skipping breakfast will affect your day’s activities and health. Breakfast is important as it fuels your brain and powers your body. It sets the rhythm for your body and prepares you for the day. When you wake up, your glucose levels are low, and therefore your muscles and brain cannot function properly. Your whole day will be disrupted. Make sure you eat within an hour of waking up. A proper breakfast should have sources of vitamins, protein and fibre. Some meals to include in your breakfast are loaves of bread, eggs, oats and fruit salad.
