We have all heard the saying “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger” but what if the seemingly harmless, ordinary activities and things we do and use are silently exterminating us?
What if the next time we shower in the morning our soap decides to turn to treachery or what if the next time we go to sleep we don’t wake up at all?
Everyday life is fraught with risks and dangers at every turn, and the menial tasks we do are no exception. It’s scary, isn’t it? And it makes you just to want to stay in bed all day and not get up and get out of the house.
So pull your sheet closer and make sure you are all tucked in safe because we are counting down to the 12 things you do every day that could kill you… PROBABLY.
#12 — Sitting
If you are one of the millions of people who work in an office cubicle, staring at your computer screen while sitting all day, then chances are you are inching closer and closer to death’s door.
Several studies by many notable institutions and medical journals have proven that long periods of physical inactivity do have direct negative effects on your health. Illnesses such as high blood pressure, permanent joint and muscle injury, and obesity are but a few of the things that you can get by just sitting all day. That is why most experts recommend that you do a little bit of stretching now and then to stimulate blood flow and your muscles. Also, having a five-minute walk around the office wouldn’t hurt at all.
#11 — Staring at a Screen all Day
Building on the potential lethality of sitting all day, staring at a screen also has adverse effects on the body. Whether it’s at work doing spreadsheets all day or at home binge watching your favourite shows for an entire weekend, this sedentary activity has been known to kill people by increasing the risk of heart attacks and strokes by a whopping 113% according to a study published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.
The solution: actually getting out of the house and enjoying some fresh air because it has been shown by various medical journals and publications that by reducing screen time to less than two hours per day can add an estimated 1.4 years to their lifespan.
#10 — Avoiding Flossing
It’s a constant reminder that we are always given by our dentists always to floss to make sure our pearly whites and our gums remain healthy because simply brushing them isn’t enough.
However, many of us are guilty of skipping this step of dental hygiene because it’s just a chore to get into every nook and cranny of our mouths. We may want to change that and get into the habit of flossing though.
It has been shown by the American Academy of Periodontology that not only does skipping flossing lead to gum disease like periodontitis, but it can also induce other diseases to take shape and attack our body such as cardiovascular diseases, respiratory ailments, as well as diabetes. So the next time you’re thinking of putting off flossing, you may be actually setting yourself up for a massive heart attack in the future.
#9 — Sleeping Less and Staying Up Too Late
What’s the harm in staying up a few more hours just to catch up on your favourite show and finding out what plot twist awaits you in the next episode? Apparently, diabetes, cancer, heart disease, and obesity are a few of those harmful things that wait in the dark while you binge watch or get too immersed on that financial report for your boss.
Sleep deprivation does not only cause health problems. It has also contributed to plenty of roadside accidents that number 40,000 each year because the driver just dozed off behind the wheel.
It turns out you can actually die from having very little sleep overtime. While there is no formal study to conclude exactly how long it takes for a person to expire from not sleeping, experts and researchers estimate it to four months. By that time, you will be experiencing extremely high blood pressure and your cognitive functions slowly shutting down from your body’s lack of substantial energy.
#8 — Lack of Sexual Activity
This may seem funny, but experts agree that having regular sexual activity has benefits to the body aside from pure physical pleasure. It is proven by several studies that sex can, in fact, help burn calories and keep your blood circulation in pretty good shape.
A study conducted by Duke University has even shown that women who had regular sex had better chances of living eight years longer than those who lack it. Also, men who have active sex lives have a 50% reduction in mortality.
So, yes, sex is good for your health just keep it in moderation because going overboard can have negative effects.
#7 — Sun Bathing
We all dream of having the perfect tan and show it off as a testament to a wonderful vacation. After all, the sun is good for our bodies with all that Vitamin D, right?
Well, yes and no. Inarguably the sun does have certain health benefits to keep us in peak condition, having to stay under its rays for longer than recommended is the equivalent of digging our own graves.
With the advent of climate change and global warming, the heat of the sun is becoming more and more dangerous to us humans; if we don’t keep our sunbathing in moderation, we can definitely get more than just a tan.
Melanoma and various skin cancers are the main villains here and melanoma, according to the Skin Cancer Foundation, is the reason for the vast majority of skin cancer-related deaths in the world. So the next time you are at the beach or going hiking, make sure to slather on some sunscreen that has the recommended amount of SPF.
#6 — Regularly Taking Pain Killers
Pain is the body’s natural way of letting you know that something is not right. It is a natural response where our body sends signals to our brain to alert us that something is not running properly in our system.
In the presence of pain, many people resort to using pain killers to dull the sensation to go about their day without being interrupted. Some may even go overboard and take them even if it is not prescribed by a physician. It may seem harmless to take pain medication but having too much of it or taking it when your body does not need it at all can result in serious complications such as ulcers, gastrointestinal infections, and even high blood pressure.
Yep, popping that aspirin in your mouth every moment you feel something twitch and ache can actually kill you. So, instead of downing those ibuprofens, see a doctor instead.
#5 — Skipping Breakfast
It’s a busy and fast-paced world, and many of us really do not have the luxury of sitting at a table to enjoy a good breakfast.
However, the old adage that breakfast if the most important meal of the day is true and writing it off your daily schedule is a terrible idea.
Having a meal after waking up in the morning jumpstarts your metabolism and, believe it or not, makes you less likely to binge on junk food and empty calories throughout the day. It is also a great way to manage your stress levels.
In several studies, people who do skip breakfast have shown an increase in poor eating choices throughout the day and consuming a lot of empty calories at night. This can greatly increase a person’s chance of developing type-2 diabetes and gaining an unhealthy amount of weight.
If you find yourself not having enough time to cook yourself a meal in the morning, grab a piece of fruit instead and jumpstart your metabolism. Your body will thank you for it.
#4 — Drinking Coffee
We all love coffee. After all, it has saved us from many sleepless nights back in college while cramming to finish our papers or staying up after hours in the office to put together a decent presentation for the following day.
Whatever our reason, our love affair with coffee is one that can definitely last a lifetime. If we can last a lifetime, that is. It turns out; coffee can kill you and drinking excessive amounts of it can drastically increase the chance of high blood pressure, palpitations, and heart attacks. The culprit is not really coffee itself but the caffeine present in our beloved Cup o’ Joe. It is widely known that caffeine is a stimulant that can be beneficial to our bodies but excessively ingesting it whether in coffee form or in energy drink form can do more than just give us a caffeine crash.
#3 — Cleaning
A clean house is a happy house. Nothing is more satisfying than seeing your home all spick and span. You would think that having a clean house is the best way of keeping you alive but your assumptions may be wrong.
While keeping an area clean reduces the risk of infection from germs and bacteria, sometimes it is the process of cleaning that can be harmful to us.
Cleaning agents such as bleach and ammonia – a chemical that is present is almost every detergent and cleaning solutions in the home – can create a deadly concoction that, when mixed together and enters our body in the form of fumes, can cause respiratory problems such as tightening our airways as if our bodies were having a severe allergic reaction.
#2 — Nail Biting
It is a filthy habit. Your mom tells you that it is, your grandma tells you that it is, even your Gym teacher never fails to remind you just how gross a habit biting your nails is.
On a daily basis, our hands and fingers touch almost every surface imaginable. From that counter at the coffee shop to the keyboards we use at work, a number of microorganisms that take a ride on our hands are unimaginable, and the spaces between our fingernails are a hotbed for bacteria.
Since, realistically, we do not constantly wash our hands every minute of every day, bacteria does tend to build up overtime, and they stay there until we sanitize it with antibacterial gels or washing our hands with soap and water.
According to Jim White, a spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, the most common pathogens taking a ride on our fingertips are salmonella and E. coli: bacteria that can easily damage our kidneys and enter our bloodstream - and the quickest way for them to enter our bodies is through nail biting.
So the next time you think of biting those fingernails, just imagine the amount of diarrhea you can potentially get with that filthy habit.
#1 — Drinking Water
Since we were kids, we are always told to drink at least eight glasses of water each day to stay hydrated.
However, drinking excessive amounts of water for whatever reason is the perfect example of the saying “too much of a good thing is bad for you”.
Water intoxication or water poisoning is a real thing and is characterized by an imbalance in the body’s electrolytes which, in turn, disrupts normal brain function. Essentially, through the process of osmosis, water enters our cells, and it got processed and distributed throughout our body. When there is an excess amount of water being absorbed by the cells and the fluids outside of it are now comparatively much lower, the fluids inside the cells shift and causes it to swell.
If any of those cells happen to be the ones in your brain, then you can count on having a massive headache because of the amount of pressure caused by the swollen cells. If the pressure becomes more and more increased, this can then lead to the brain shutting down and cutting off blood circulation that ends up as cerebral edema.
The experience is an unpleasant one as it can ultimately lead to seizures, coma, brain damage, and even death.