Good eating habits are the cornerstone of a healthy diet and a healthy lifestyle. If you follow some good habits, it tends to mean you’re eating the right foods and taking care of your body. To put it simply, you’re following a balanced diet!
On the flip side, bad eating habits lead to all sorts of negative health consequences. Weight gain is an obvious one, but some bad habits can lead to harmful diseases like diabetes or hypertension. As such, it makes sense to identify some of the biggest bad eating habits and what they mean.
Constant snacking
Chronic snacking is an eating habit where you are constantly munching on things throughout the day. You have breakfast, but it doesn’t satisfy you. So, you might grab an extra pastry or two on your way to work before having some crips before lunch. After lunch, you’re snacking on all kinds of extra things before dinner - and the same again after that meal.
If you’re guilty of this, it’s a sign that you’re clearly not eating well at your main meals. You’re not eating nutritious meals that make you feel full and satisfied. Consequently, you should rethink your diet and make an effort to eat more fiber and protein with every meal. These nutrients are essential for giving you the feeling of fullness. As a result, you’ll snack less, meaning you consume less sugar, salt, fat, and calories per day.
Emotional eating
Yes, some of us are guilty of emotional eating - which is a really damaging habit. Effectively, we start relying on food as a coping mechanism emotionally. If you’re upset, you turn to food. When you’re stressed, you start eating loads. It’s a habit that can lead to you eating way too many calories per day, causing excessive weight gain. As a result, you run the risk of developing all sorts of health conditions - like heart disease.
Emotional eating is a sign of two things. For one, it is a warning sign of food addiction. You’re relying on food to fill a hole in your life, which is the same idea as people who take drugs or smoke. Thankfully, there are places like Ottawa Counselling & Psychotherapy Centre that provide therapy for food addiction or emotional eating habits. Moreover, emotional eating is a sign of external pressures in your life eating away at you. Figuring out the cause of your stress is the best way to prevent this bad habit in the first place.
Endless junk food consumption
Let’s be honest, who doesn’t like junk food? We’re not just talking about McDonald’s here; we’re including everything from candy to chocolate bars, etc. You know, the foods that don’t serve any purpose other than to taste good!
Eating too much junk food is also another possible sign of food addiction. Here, you’re addicted to the sugar and probably all the artificial flavorings in the foods. It’s also a very bad habit as it can cause all sorts of problems throughout your body. Excessive sugar consumption leads to bacterial plaque that can ruin your teeth. Junk food is high in calories, making it highly likely you’ll gain an unhealthy amount of weight and be at risk of cardiovascular diseases.
Ditch all this junk for healthier alternatives. If you need a sweet kick, opt for fruit instead. Make your own versions of junk food at home - a burger cooked by you will always be infinitely healthier than one from a fast food place. Those of you with a real problem should look into deleting delivery apps from your phones to remove the temptation.
Eating too quickly
The last bad habit is one a lot of people are guilty of, yet may not view it as a bad habit. Even if you eat relatively healthily, eating too quickly could lead to various health problems. It’s a sign that you don’t have a very good relationship with food. You treat it as a necessity, rather than taking the time to enjoy it. This can also indicate a lot of stress in your life as you’re frantically gobbling stuff down because you feel like you don’t have enough time to eat slowly.
Eating too quickly is bad because your stomach takes time to send signals to your brain. Basically, if you eat too fast, you can eat way too much food. You’re not giving your stomach enough time to adjust and tell your brain that you’re full. As a result, you overeat with every meal and possibly end up with indigestion. Slow down and chew your food when you eat - it’ll help you consume healthier portion sizes and feel less uncomfortably full.
Are you guilty of any of these bad eating habits? Identifying the problem is the first step to tackling it. Start following better eating habits for a healthier life!
On the flip side, bad eating habits lead to all sorts of negative health consequences. Weight gain is an obvious one, but some bad habits can lead to harmful diseases like diabetes or hypertension. As such, it makes sense to identify some of the biggest bad eating habits and what they mean.
Constant snacking
Chronic snacking is an eating habit where you are constantly munching on things throughout the day. You have breakfast, but it doesn’t satisfy you. So, you might grab an extra pastry or two on your way to work before having some crips before lunch. After lunch, you’re snacking on all kinds of extra things before dinner - and the same again after that meal.
If you’re guilty of this, it’s a sign that you’re clearly not eating well at your main meals. You’re not eating nutritious meals that make you feel full and satisfied. Consequently, you should rethink your diet and make an effort to eat more fiber and protein with every meal. These nutrients are essential for giving you the feeling of fullness. As a result, you’ll snack less, meaning you consume less sugar, salt, fat, and calories per day.
Emotional eating
Yes, some of us are guilty of emotional eating - which is a really damaging habit. Effectively, we start relying on food as a coping mechanism emotionally. If you’re upset, you turn to food. When you’re stressed, you start eating loads. It’s a habit that can lead to you eating way too many calories per day, causing excessive weight gain. As a result, you run the risk of developing all sorts of health conditions - like heart disease.
Emotional eating is a sign of two things. For one, it is a warning sign of food addiction. You’re relying on food to fill a hole in your life, which is the same idea as people who take drugs or smoke. Thankfully, there are places like Ottawa Counselling & Psychotherapy Centre that provide therapy for food addiction or emotional eating habits. Moreover, emotional eating is a sign of external pressures in your life eating away at you. Figuring out the cause of your stress is the best way to prevent this bad habit in the first place.
Endless junk food consumption
Let’s be honest, who doesn’t like junk food? We’re not just talking about McDonald’s here; we’re including everything from candy to chocolate bars, etc. You know, the foods that don’t serve any purpose other than to taste good!
Eating too much junk food is also another possible sign of food addiction. Here, you’re addicted to the sugar and probably all the artificial flavorings in the foods. It’s also a very bad habit as it can cause all sorts of problems throughout your body. Excessive sugar consumption leads to bacterial plaque that can ruin your teeth. Junk food is high in calories, making it highly likely you’ll gain an unhealthy amount of weight and be at risk of cardiovascular diseases.
Ditch all this junk for healthier alternatives. If you need a sweet kick, opt for fruit instead. Make your own versions of junk food at home - a burger cooked by you will always be infinitely healthier than one from a fast food place. Those of you with a real problem should look into deleting delivery apps from your phones to remove the temptation.
Eating too quickly
The last bad habit is one a lot of people are guilty of, yet may not view it as a bad habit. Even if you eat relatively healthily, eating too quickly could lead to various health problems. It’s a sign that you don’t have a very good relationship with food. You treat it as a necessity, rather than taking the time to enjoy it. This can also indicate a lot of stress in your life as you’re frantically gobbling stuff down because you feel like you don’t have enough time to eat slowly.
Eating too quickly is bad because your stomach takes time to send signals to your brain. Basically, if you eat too fast, you can eat way too much food. You’re not giving your stomach enough time to adjust and tell your brain that you’re full. As a result, you overeat with every meal and possibly end up with indigestion. Slow down and chew your food when you eat - it’ll help you consume healthier portion sizes and feel less uncomfortably full.
Are you guilty of any of these bad eating habits? Identifying the problem is the first step to tackling it. Start following better eating habits for a healthier life!
| FOLLOW ME ON SOCIAL MEDIA |
No comments:
Post a Comment
I love reading and responding to comments but in order to get my reply you must ensure you are NOT a no-reply blogger. If you are, here are some quick steps to change that!
1. Go to the home page of your Blogger account.
2. Select the drop down beside your name on the top right corner and choose Blogger Profile.
3. Select Edit Profile at the top right.
4. Select the Show My Email Address box.
5. Hit Save Profile.