Burger, pizza, fries, chocolates, and late night munching; sounds fun doesn’t it? I’m sure most of us have their mouths watering right about now thinking of all these delicious blessings to munch on. But here’s the catch; they may be delicious, but they’re also deleterious. While we’re over-indulged in polluting our bodies with whatever feasts satisfy our taste buds regardless of their effects on our bodies, our innards are in a world of agony, pleading us to bring about some revolution in our bad eating habits.
While eating is amongst the most basic necessities of our kind, we seldom take it as seriously as it should be taken. In the present era of havoc and atrocities, necessities have become luxuries, and we have ended up adopting nothing but bad habits. They don’t just go as far as ruining our daily lives, it hampers our ability to function well and negatively impact our physical AND mental health. For a lot of people, eating is the sole purpose of their existence; while for some, it is entirely the opposite. Our definitions of “beauty” have compelled a big proportion of the population to alter their eating habits. While that isn’t a bad thing, in the long run, depriving yourself of the essential nutrients your body craves can be devastating to your health as well. In short, every meal must be in moderation, and healthy eating mustn’t be a choice; it should be a compulsion.
So while we’re at it, let’s take a look at the various unhealthy, yet commonly practiced eating habits to absolutely avoid:
- Skipping breakfast:
First on the list, is the first meal of the day. Because no matter how hard you try to evade the topic, breakfast is undoubtedly the most important meal of the day. When you skip breakfast, you’re encouraging your body to go into unhealthy munching mode throughout the day. If you start off your day with healthy eating habits, you’ll stay healthy all through the day. A healthy, nutritious breakfast stimulates your digestive system first thing after waking up, boosting your body and giving it the push it needs to function throughout the day. It helps you go easy on your lunch and better chose your options, because your appetite isn’t going haywire by the time you’ve reached lunch time. So next time you think of skipping breakfast, think again; because those few extra minutes can be defining for your overall health and well being.
- Munching at night:
We get it, nobody wants to watch a movie or binge watch on their favorite TV shows without having snacks to munch on. But those cookies, chips, chocolates, sodas, popcorn and the likes are just an invitation to a realm of unhealthy lifestyle. Your body isn’t designed to take excess carbohydrates consumption in a good way; you will only end up gaining weight and storing fat in your body. And obesity is a menace that only leads to a multitude of other diseases. So if you really do want to munch on something, why not try vegetables instead? Carrots are a healthy and delicious option, for example. Get the best of both worlds!
- Eating before going to bed:
Every now and then, we crave something super rich and delicious before going to bed. Not just before going to bed, but sometimes even getting up in the middle of the night and wandering off into the kitchen, rummaging through the refrigerator looking for something to feast ourselves on. But that is simply a big no-no. When you give in to your temptations of eating late at night, your body starts to malfunction and it distinctly disrupts your sleeping schedule, making it harder to fall asleep and resulting in a fatigued and tired you the following day. Your body will direct its attention towards digesting food, so you can kiss your sleep goodbye.
- Overeating:
This is your body, and no one but yourself gets to decide when might be a good time to stop yourself from over-indulging. Even if your mother prompts you to take a second serving, you should know if your stomach wants you to go any further. It is always advisable to stop eating before your stomach is entirely full. Do not overeat, and do not give in to temptations. Overeating can also disturb your digestive system, and mess with its healthy functioning. The key is to eat everything, but in moderation.
- Starving:
Contrary to popular belief, starving yourself will not benefit you in any way. If you are amongst the kind that thinks starving will assist in weight loss, you’re not only wrong, but also completely misled. Starving doesn’t encourage weight loss; it encourages weight gain. When you eat after periods of starvation, your body will automatically provoke you to eat more, so that it can store fats and have a reserve next time you think of going into starve mode. If you’re looking to lose weight, reassess your diet plans and eat healthier.
- Stress eating:
A rather popular trend these days, stress eating has become the next big bad eating habit. A lot of us tend to turn to food to dissolve our problems and sorrows, if not resolve them. Stress eating, or emotional eating in general prompts you into eating junk even when you’re not particularly hungry. You end up finding resort in binging on an ice-cream tub, or turn into a cookie monster every time you’re depressed or stressed out. While none of your problems will ever be resolved by stress eating, it will most definitely make you gain weight as you over indulge in delicacies that are rich in fats and carbohydrates. That just gives you more reasons to stress on, doesn’t it? So let’s practice breaking the habit, and resort to actually finding a resolution to our problems instead of retreating into a bubble of junk food.
- Junk food:
Is there anything more pleasing than a slice of cheesy pizza that satisfies your taste buds and your appetite? The problem being, it is just another unhealthy habit. While fighting off these temptations are nothing short of declaring war on ourselves, some simple ways can assist you better in doing so. Drink more water, eat vegetables and fruits, fight off stress, take smaller and more frequent meals. Avoiding junk food will also help in disease prevention, as obesity, cholesterol, cardiovascular diseases etc can be life-threatening.
