Even though you might have a healthy lifestyle, there are small habits that might be damaging your body. Sleep habits, vitamin intake, hygiene, diet and exercise all play an important role in your overall health. Below is our list of the top 8 ways you might be damaging your body.
1. You’re not getting enough Vitamin D
Vitamin D is the ‘sunshine vitamin’, and it’s best if you get it from actually spending some time in the sun, however you can also buy it in pill format. It’s important for healthy bones and teeth, and a strong immune system. If you’re supplementing your diet with Vitamin D, be sure to take it in the morning. Your sleep can be negatively affected if you take Vitamin D later in the day.
2. You’re not washing your hands enough
If you didn’t know that washing your hands was important before 2020, you definitely know it is now. Washing your hands frequently has been one of the most basic things you can do to protect yourself and others from COVID and other transmissible diseases. When you wash your hands, be sure to scrub all surfaces – including back of hands, between fingers and under nails – for at least 20 seconds.
3. You’re always stressed
Stress is more dangerous than you think, and sometimes the damage caused by stress can be irreversible. Stress affects all systems of the body, including musculoskeletal, respiratory, cardiovascular, endocrine, gastrointestinal, nervous and reproductive systems. It also negatively impacts your sleep and your relationship with others.
4. Not sleeping enough
Studies have shown that inadequate sleep over time can shorten your lifespan. Trading sleep to cram more into the day increases your risk of developing serious medical conditions, like cardiovascular disease, decreased immune function, obesity and high blood pressure.
5. You don’t exercise enough, or you exercise too much
Did you know there’s a Goldie Locks zone of exercise – not too much, and not too little. You have to find the sweet spot for you, but general advice is you should exercise at least three times a week for 30 minutes. However, if you access too much for weeks or months at a time, you risk developing ‘over-training syndrome’. This is when you don’t give your body enough time to recover and inadvertently put your body under chronic stress.
6. Too much alcohol
One or two drinks with friends might help take the edge off, but did you know it also messes with your sleep? Read our blog post about it: What alcohol really does to your sleep. Drinking too much alcohol too often can also weaken your immune system, change mood and behaviour, cause high blood pressure and other heart-related problems, and also damages your liver.
7. You consume too much sugar
When you eat too much sugar, the extra insulin in your body causes walls of your arteries to become inflamed, which could lead to heart disease. And this is just the start. Too much sugar can also lead to diabetes, liver disease, cavities, and even poor sleep.
8. Not drinking enough water
When you don’t drink enough water, your body becomes dehydrated, you suffer from consistent bad breath, fatigue, constipation and increased sugar cravings. You will also feel tired and you might get sick more frequently because your body is unable to flush out harmful toxins that cause disease.