6 Unhealthy Habits Besides Smoking

If you want to be healthy, you are better off not smoking cigarettes.  This information isn't new or a surprise to just about anyone reading this, but there are some other habits that can reign havoc on your health too that may not be so obvious: 

#1: Sitting all day - Even if you exercise regularly, habitually sitting for prolonged periods, is being increasingly linked to a variety of health problems. According to Alberta Health Services-Cancer Care in Canada, inactivity is linked to nearly 160,000 cases of breast, colon, prostate, and lung cancer every year, about two-thirds as many cancer cases caused by smoking.

Make it right: Make it a habit to take breaks on-the-move at work, and even make (or buy) a standing workstation so you're less apt to sit all day. At home, resist the temptation to veg out in front of the TV. Go for a walk around the block to relax, spend a few minutes cleaning.  The bottom line is keep moving.

#2: Eating too much meat and cheese - Animal proteins are rich in IGF-1, a growth hormone that can promote the growth of cancer cells. A University of Southern California study, published in the journal Cell Metabolism recently found that people on high-animal-protein diets during middle age were four times more likely to die of cancer than people on low-protein diets, a mortality risk factor comparable to smoking.

Make it right: Replace some of your animal proteins with vegetable protein. The same study found that diets high in plant-based proteins like beans, which have protein levels equivalent to some meats, didn't trigger the same increase in cancer rates. In general, middle-aged adults should be eating 0.8 grams of protein for every 2 pounds of body weight daily. The study also found that once you pass the age of 65, eating lots of animal protein isn't as harmful because your body's production of IGF-1 begins to slow down.

#3: Cooking with natural gas - If you're one of the 34% of Americans whose home is equipped with a gas stove, you're getting an added dose of carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide, and formaldehyde every time you cook a meal. Those same three contaminants are common in secondhand cigarette smoke.  A December 2013 study in Environmental Health Perspectives found that all three contaminants in homes with gas stoves regularly exceeded public health guidelines.

Make it right: Use your vent hood when you use your gas oven or cooktop. Ventilating a gas range can reduce pollutant levels by 60 to 90%.  It also help to cook on your back burners for more efficient ventilation. 

#4: Cooking with the wrong oil - Even if you rely on an electric stove at your house, you aren't immune to cooking's polluting effects. Studies on restaurant and residential kitchens have shown that high-heat cooking with shortening and soybean oil (usually just called "vegetable oil" in the U.S.) releases particulate matter, aldehydes, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, all compounds found in cigarette smoke and linked to airway inflammation.

Make it right: Pick the type of cooking oil best suited your use. For instance, olive oil isn't good for frying or high-heat cooking but is fine for salad dressings. Avocado oil, on the other hand, is great for high-heat cooking. Look for the "smoke point" on oils that you buy to make sure the oil matches your needs. And don't forget to run the ventilation hood!

#5: Tanning indoors - A recent study in the Journal of the American Medical Association estimated that indoor tanning causes roughly 420,000 cases of skin cancer in the U.S. every year. Smoking, by comparison, causes 226,000 cases of lung cancer.

Make it right: Get your sun outdoors, but in modest amounts.  Sunlight on the skin produces vitamin D3, as well as probably many other beneficial compounds that we haven't even identified yet.  Avoid being in the sun midday, when it is the strongest.  You know that you have had too much sun if you get red, so don't get too much of a good thing.  Every sunburn that you get in your lifetime, can increase your risk of skin cancer. 

#6: Not getting enough sleep - Chronic sleep deprivation not only makes you cranky, it can trigger high blood pressure, heart attacks, strokes, obesity and a host of other health problems. One study even found that not getting at least six or seven hours of sleep led to mortality rates on par with those seen in cigarette smokers. Even getting poor-quality or fragmented sleep, can speed the growth of tumors.

Make it right: Try to get enough sleep.  You know that you are getting enough sleep if you wake up without an alarm and refreshed.  It is also important to go to bed about the same time every night.  This synchronizes your circadian rhythms and hormonal activity.  Don't assume that being tired is normal. If you feel like you aren't getting enough sleep regularly, talk to a health professional to see if you might be suffering from a form of sleep apnea.

For More Information:

https://shine.yahoo.com/healthy-living/6-unhealthy-habits-bad-smoking-170500236.html