Most Common Bad Health Habits

The spectrum of bad health habits can range from mild to severe or rare to common. We generally know when our habits are bad for us, but what we may not know is that we’re not the only ones fighting the battle to break them.

So, what are some of the most common bad health habits, and did yours make the list?

Skipping Breakfast

This is arguably the most common bad health habit of them all. Armed with a million excuses for skipping breakfast such as not having time or not feeling hungry, a lot of us are guilty of this one.

It’s all in the name ‘breakfast’; it’s considered one of the more important meals because you’re breaking your body’s fast between your last meal and throughout your sleep. It doesn’t have to be too flashy, but it has to be more than a coffee.

Not keeping hydrated

There are plenty of reasons people aren’t keeping hydrated enough. They forget, they’re too busy, they think it’s a boring, flavourless drink… But, not drinking enough water can lead to some serious health problems down the line such as a weakened immune system, muscle fatigue, poor skin, and serious complications from chronic dehydration.

Not applying sunscreen

Some of us simply forget to wear sunscreen, others may actively welcome the sun’s rays through activities such as sunbaking for a tan. Regardless of the reasons, not applying sunscreen to your skin, particularly on days with high UV levels (not always sunny days!) can be detrimental to your skin health and can lead to some fatal consequences.

It doesn’t take long for the sun to burn our skin, and once it’s burnt, the damage has already begun. The sun’s rays lead to the deterioration of the skin’s elasticity and increase things such as wrinkles, moles, freckles, discolouration, and on a more serious note, skin cancers.

Not getting enough shut eye

Our bodies need sleep to function – there’s no two ways about it. Yet, increasing amounts of people attempt to function on much less than the recommended 8 hours per night. While reasons vary (intentional or no), lack of sleep can affect your body from many different angles.

Our brains use sleep to process and consolidate the day’s information and commit it to memory, as well as promoting the growth of new cells to allow optimal performance. Sleep also repairs and restores our muscles, as well as balancing our hormones.

Which of these bad habits do you need to change?