We’ve all been warned about the dangers of smoking cigarettes, but even if you don’t smoke, you might be putting your health at risk every single day. Turns out, all of those late nights, sides of bacon, and pairs of uncomfortable shoes are more harmful to your health than you think. In fact- they’re as dangerous as smoking.
Take a look at the five seemingly harmless things that are just as bad for your health as cigarettes.
5. Not Getting Enough Sleep
According to the National Sleep Foundation, adults should be getting between seven to nine hours of sleep each night, however most people fail to reach that recommendation. Going to sleep an hour past bedtime might seem harmless, but over time, sleep deprivation can cause high blood pressure, heart attacks, strokes, and obesity.
One study found that people who get less than six or seven hours of sleep had a similar mortality rate compared to cigarette smokers.
4. Texting
Many people spend just as much time sleeping as they do hunched over on their phones, computers, or tablets, so it’s no surprise that ‘text neck’ is becoming a huge problem for people of every age. The bad posture is caused by leaning the head over towards the phone or screen, and that strain on the neck creates muscle tension which will injure the spine, and cause herniated discs and pinched nerves.
3. Wearing Uncomfortable Shoes
We’ve all told ourselves ‘pain is beauty’ at one time or another in an attempt to justify a painful fashion or beauty trend, but it turns out you shouldn’t take that pain in stride.
In particular, wearing uncomfortable shoes, like high heels, put the wearer at a greater risk of falls, and has also been shown to have a huge effect on posture, and even cause spine and feet degeneration.
2. Sitting for Too Long
For many people, sitting at a desk all day is part of the job description, but sitting at a desk for prolonged periods of time has been shown to have an array of negative health effects, even for people who exercise regularly. Sitting for long periods of time increases your risk of heart disease, depression, diabetes, and types of cancer.
According to a study conducted at the Pennington Biomedical Research Centers, people who spend more time sitting have a shorter lifespan regardless of age, wights, or level of exercise.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), processed meats like bacon, hot dogs, and ham have been shown to cause cancer, and have likened the food to other known carcinogens like alcohol, cigarettes, asbestos, and arsenic.
The report said that eating just 50g of processed meat, which is less than two slices of meat, everyday increased the chance of developing colorectal cancer by 18 percent. The WHO also went on to link all red meat to cancer, although there was less definitive proof.
Are you shocked that these seemingly harmless everyday activities are as bad for your health as smoking cigarettes? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below.
[Featured image credit: www.huffingtonpost.com]