Healthy People: Unhealthy Habits
By Sara Butler
You can be a very health-minded individual but still have habits that are incredibly unhealthy for you. Even people who are self-proclaimed health nuts can be surprised by the things that they do that turn out to be not so great for their overall health and wellness. Here are a few shocking habits that healthy people have that aren't very healthy at all.
Following Outdated Advice
Nutrition information seems to be constantly changing. For instance, you may have heard growing up that eggs were full of cholesterol, so you now avoid eggs or just eat the whites. But that's a myth that has been firmly busted by many studies; if you're still following it, then you're missing out on the wonderfully nutritious world of eggs!
When you don't look for updated information and keep yourself informed, then you're bound to follow outdated advice at some point. Don't hold onto outdated beliefs but strive to always learn more.
Overeating Healthy Foods
Turns out, you can get too much of a good thing. Researchers at Cornell have found that people tend to overeat foods they perceive as being healthier. Foods labeled as health foods have an aura around them that lulls you into a false sense of security. But most of the time, any food labeled low fat, reduced sugar, or organic has just as many calories, sugars, and fat as you find in similar foods. Organic foods are often mistaken as being healthier, but organic cookies are just as bad for your health as the non-organic variety, so be careful!
Diet is Too Strict
Those who live by really strict eating plans such as raw foods only, or organics, run into trouble if they don't accommodate any variation. If you do that, then you're almost certainly setting yourself up for failure. That's because when you deprive yourself of foods in an effort to be "good" instead of "bad," all you're doing is taking away flexibility.
You must eat to survive, and you can't go your entire life without the taste of a cupcake. A flexible diet is one that you can stick with for the long haul and that's far healthier than staying strict all the time, then bingeing on an entire box of cookies in a weak moment.
Even the best intentions can fail. Make sure you're following healthy eating rules that are doable!
To learn more about your health, wellness, and fitness, see your local chiropractor at The Joint Chiropractic in Queen Creek, Ariz.