These 6 Habits May Do More Harm Than Good

The basics of staying healthy seem to be pretty easy to follow: exercise, eat well and get sufficient sleep. This way you think you are on the perfect track, right? But, surprisingly and shockingly, it’s more complicated than this! Very often we make some choices for the comfort and benefit of our health; but these choices may even hurt or harm us in the long run. Here is a list of 6 habits (the unexpected ones) which might be doing more harm than good:

These Habits May do More Harm

1. Compulsively using hand sanitizer

If you are among those people who reach for the hand sanitizer whenever they make contact with the outside world; then you should take a pause. Soap and water is the best thing to use; unless you are in a germ-prone area like a hospital. At times when you are not near the sink; then hand sanitizers can help, but be aware to read to their label first. Research has shown that sanitizers which contain triclosan may promote the virus and bacteria resistance to antibiotic medications. Instead, try to use a brand which contains at least 60% alcohol; so that 99% of the bacteria will be killed on contact.

2. Wearing flip-flops

In order to get rid of the pain from toe pinching boots and sky high heels; flip-flops have helped a lot in getting the much needed comfort, right? Not exactly! Flip-flops and other flip-flops like unsupportive sandals have no arch support and at the same time, they also don’t give structural support required by the foot. As a result, as it may lead to stress fractures as the uncushioned feet are more strained while trying to support too much weight.

3. Doing only cardio when you work out

Its pretty easy to assume that sticking to the same cardio workout will help in losing weight. But, if you are doing the same cardio; then over the time your body might become so accustomed with the routine that you will start to burn less fat. If you want to burn more calories; then you should integrate resistance training into your routine.

4. Skipping meals to save up for later

Generally, women have the tendency to save their calories by skipping their meals; so that they can have the fun stuff later on. Many women don’t take breakfast or lunch so that they can drink few glasses of wine at the end of the day. But this skipping habit may develop irritability and cravings; which in turn will lead to overeating and thus can cause more problems.

5. Drinking only bottled water

It is generally assumed that the tap water is filled with who knows what! And thus drinking bottled water is the best option. But, bottled water does not contain fluoride; thus causes fluoride deficiency in some people. So, instead of bottled water; try to drink filtered and purified tap water.

6. Cleaning with disinfecting products

Using cleansers which boast disinfecting and anti bacterial properties for keeping the home germ free, could also have some opposite effects. In researches, it has been significantly found that the chemicals, especially Quaternary ammonium compounds in these disinfecting products, can even cause diseases like cancer or asthma. Therefore, it is recommended to clean with a blend of vinegar and water or else by scrubbing the surfaces with baking soda; as both of these possess natural antibacterial properties.

So, try to change these unexpected habits so that you will be harmless in the short as well as long run.

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