Life is supposed to be amazing. But it would help if you did not have fun at the expense of your health. Minor habits like nail-biting and drinking can cause significant problems if not handled. Even though some habits may seem minor, they can have long-lasting impacts in your life. Here are 5 seemingly innocent practices that can build up if not addressed.
By Team Savant
Image: Zan
Skipping Breakfast
Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. If you have a busy life with a tight schedule, you may opt to skip breakfast or grab a cup of coffee. Skipping breakfast can reduce your energy levels in your system, lowering your concentration span. This will make you less productive at work.
Another negative effect is that you will likely overfeed during lunch, making you susceptible to obesity. You can effectively fix this by taking breakfast within two hours of waking up. Consume a proper breakfast that consists of carbohydrates and proteins. If you’re unable to do this, you can pack oatmeal or whole cereal meal when headed off to work.
Listening to Loud Music
After leaving a noisy concert or any other noisy event, you may notice that you struggle to hear for a while. You might hear ringing and muffled sounds in your ears before you regain your normal hearing. Exposure to noisy music for long can cause damage to membranes in the cochlea or even damage the hair cells in the ear, making you susceptible to hearing loss.
If you have experienced hearing loss, it would be best to visit a hearing specialist who will prescribe hearing aids for you. If your aids are damaged, don’t hesitate to get a hearing aid repair. Generally, it would be better to avoid noisy places to conserve hearing.
Drinking Excessively
After a long day, you may want to take a glass of wine or beer to unwind. However, consuming excess alcohol can negatively impact your health. Alcohol contains up to 120 empty calories.
Sometimes you may consume a lot of alcohol due to dehydration. To avoid this, drink a glass of water before every alcoholic drink for hydration. Also, it would be wise to restrict your alcohol intake to one glass per day. You can prevent excessive drinking by looking for other relaxation options instead. They may include going for road trips, reading, gaming, and nature walks.
Poor Posture
Slouching can sometimes prove comfortable compared to standing and sitting upright. But it can cause a tension headache which can strain your neck muscles due to positioning your head poorly.
Given the harmful effects of poor posture, you should adapt to an upright position where you tuck your chin in, put your shoulders back, and have your elbows relaxed at 90 degrees. It would help if you used armrests to support your forearms.
Nail Biting
Nail-biting can start as a harmless habit during childhood but bring problems in adulthood. Continuous nail-biting is often a subconscious reaction to stress, giving the brain something to focus on.
Another problem that can result from nail-biting is contamination. You can transfer germs from your mouth to the nails, making you vulnerable to nail bed infections. Moreover, research has shown that nail biters might experience bruxism-jaw clenching, causing tooth sensitivity and recessed gums. To fix this, keep a nail file with you always to file whenever you get the urge to bite. If this fails, consider using products, like bad-tasting nail polish that will help you curb the habit.
Conclusion
As you can see, seemingly innocent habits can develop and cause problems in life. Take necessary actions to curb these habits because they can wreak havoc in your system.