It is well known that eating nutritious foods, exercising and getting enough sleep can improve long-term health.
But doctors have revealed the surprising habits they avoid, from giving up alcohol and avoiding garlic to sitting on the back seat of a motorbike or running to the toilet frequently.
While health claims about alcohol are notoriously unclear, research has gradually shown that reducing alcohol consumption could have long-term benefits, including better sleep, healthier skin and a slimmer waist. Experts said they either limit themselves to one drink a day or avoid it altogether.
Fad diets have gone viral on social media, each claiming to be better than the other, but doctors told that it’s better not to follow any of them.
And it turns out there is such a thing as drinking too much water and peeing too often.
Here are the 12 everyday habits doctors should avoid, telling :
Dr. David Shusterman (left) and Dr. Tommy Ibrahim (right) told that they stay away from garlic foods, alcohol, diets and sugary drinks, among other things
Eat foods containing garlic
Garlic is known for its immune-boosting properties and contains nutrients such as vitamin B6, vitamin C, manganese and fiber. One clove also contains less than five calories.
A study published in the Journal of Nutrition found that people who took aged garlic extract supplements for three months during cold and flu season had less severe symptoms and missed fewer school days.
However, experts said they are trying not to stress about it.
“Despite some health benefits associated with garlic consumption, garlic in general may cause some other unintended side effects, particularly in the gastrointestinal system,” said Dr. Tommy Ibrahim, President and CEO of Bassett Healthcare Network in New York State .
“It certainly contributes to heartburn, can cause stomach problems, bloating, bloating, and some other unpleasant side effects.”
“And that’s definitely true for me, so I usually avoid foods that are high in garlic.”
Garlic is rich in fructans, which are carbohydrates that can cause digestive problems such as gas, bloating and stomach pain. It can also trigger acid reflux by reducing muscle movement in the esophagus. This causes stomach acid to build up, which can lead to heartburn and nausea.
“If something on a menu piques my interest and … it contains garlic, I always ask the server or the chef not to add any additional garlic under any circumstances,” Dr. Ibrahim.
“I tend to shy away from it completely.”
Drink more than one glass of alcohol per day
By staying sober in October, you may get healthier skin, better sleep, and even lose some weight
It has long been proven that excessive alcohol consumption leads to health problems such as liver damage, high blood pressure and heart disease. Dr. However, Ibrahim has given up on it altogether.
‘[Alcohol] was something I actually gave up completely about 18 months ago. “I was always just a social drinker of sorts, but as I got a little older in the last few years, I noticed a noticeable effect even at moderate to low levels of consumption,” he said.
“So I decided to give it up entirely, and since then I feel like I’m sleeping a lot better, I’m a little more energetic, I wake up in the morning and just feel a broader sense of vibrancy.”
“It was something great.”
Dr. Ibrahim also said that he was able to be a role model for his children by cutting alcohol from his diet.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has stated that no amount of alcohol is safe, and recent research suggests that the risks of alcohol may outweigh the potential benefits.
Earlier this summer, researchers at Oxford University examined data from over 500,000 Chinese adults, a third of whom drank alcohol at least once a week. They found that alcohol consumption increased the risk of 60 diseases in men, including liver and colon cancer, gout, cataracts and ulcers.
Dr. David Shusterman, a urologist in New York, told : “Excessive alcohol consumption is different than having a glass of wine with dinner.” “If you drink a small amount of alcohol, your body processes it fairly well.”
“The problem is when you drink more than one glass a day, so I avoid drinking more than one glass a day.”
Peeing too often
“If you just peed an hour before, you won’t really accumulate much in that hour.” “It’s better to have a full bladder when you go to the bathroom,” said Dr. Shusterman
Believe it or not, it is possible to make too many trips to the bathroom.
“It is good to maintain bladder health by not emptying too early,” said Dr. Shusterman. “If you have a small amount of urine in your bladder [and] Your body is telling you to go, you could probably wait a bit longer.’
“If you don’t drink a lot of water at once, your bladder won’t fill up quickly.”
Walking too frequently is a problem because it trains the bladder to respond to smaller and smaller amounts of urine, causing you to pee more frequently.
“What happens is you exercise your bladder muscles uselessly.” “It’s kind of a vicious circle,” said Dr. Shusterman.
“If you just peed an hour before, you won’t really accumulate much in that hour.” “It’s better to have a full bladder when you go to the bathroom.”
Riding a motorcycle
According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), more than 6,000 motorcyclists died in crashes in 2021, the highest number ever recorded. Around 80,000 people were injured.
Dr. Ibrahim said he avoids getting on the back seat of a motorcycle for personal reasons.
“I actually used to own a motorcycle, and the same day that I actually bought my motorcycle, a really, really good friend of mine actually lost his life in a pretty tragic motorcycle accident,” he said.
“Immediately after that happened, I actually sold my motorcycle and never got on one again, so I’m avoiding that at the moment.”
The IIHS also estimates that the number of motorcycle deaths is nearly 24 times higher than the number of car accident deaths.
“It’s very important to look at areas in your life where you can improve safety, especially if you’re doing something that’s high risk,” said Dr. Shusterman.
You forego the annual examination
Annual checkups can help catch health problems before they get worse
Dr. Shusterman is an advocate of getting an annual checkup, even if you feel completely healthy.
“It’s important to do an annual evaluation for both young and old people because you never know what’s going to turn up. And if we find that out early, that’s crucial to finding out what’s in there,” said he.
“If you don’t check in regularly, things are usually already advanced by the time you get there.”
A 2023 survey of more than 2,000 U.S. adults by insurance company Aflac found that one in four people skip annual checkups because they feel completely healthy.
The survey also found that over half of respondents who found out they had cancer were diagnosed through routine checkups.
Skipping meals or eating too much
“The number one problem people face is overeating,” said Dr. Shusterman.
According to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Dietary Guidelines for Americans, women should consume about 1,600 to 2,400 calories per day, while men should consume about 2,200 to 3,200 per day.
However, data from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) revealed that average daily calorie consumption worldwide increased by nine percent compared to last year to about 2,900 per day.
“It is always better to eat smaller, regular meals throughout the day rather than three larger meals,” said Dr. Ibrahim.
Additionally, he said skipping meals can also be dangerous. “I think skipping meals and overeating is always problematic, especially as people get older,” he said.
A 2018 study published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health found that teens who skipped breakfast were more likely to develop stress and depression.
Additionally, a 2022 review in the journal Nutrients suggested that skipping meals and eating at irregular times could lead to an increased risk of obesity.
Fad diets
While diets like keto and carnivore are great for weight loss, they also carry an increased risk of heart disease and other illnesses. There are many health benefits to going vegan – but it can also leave a person lacking in some important vitamins and minerals
Fad diets have been popping up all over the world in recent years, particularly on social media sites like TikTok.
Some of these, like the Mediterranean diet, are consistently associated with a lower risk of heart disease and stroke, as well as longer life expectancy. However, others, such as keto, are more controversial.
For example, a 2013 meta-analysis of more than 250,000 participants found that those on a ketogenic diet were 31 percent more likely to die from heart disease.
Dr. Ibrahim prefers to stay away. “I don’t believe in diets,” he said. “I think diets are just short-term, small victories. Without real lifestyle improvements, it’s really difficult to maintain long-term benefits.”
“I firmly believe that it is simply important to eat a healthy, balanced diet and exercise regularly.”
Drink sugary drinks
Some of the most popular sodas on the market are full of sugar. Classics like Mountain Dew and Fanta have up to 65 grams of sugar, more than 18 cookies or six donuts.
However, it’s not just lemonades that are too sweet. Dr. Shusterman said many fruit juices that may seem healthy are also filled with added sugar. For example, a 2019 Harvard University study found that consuming three and a half additional glasses of orange juice per week can increase the risk of diabetes by 15 percent.
“I think these are really harmful to most people, especially when taken undiluted,” he said. “People are buying orange juice and cranberry juice and all these juices, and their carbohydrate and sugar content goes up.”
The USDA states that the average amount of sugar in both sodas and fruit juices is 20 to 26 grams per cup. Federal guidelines recommend no more than 24 grams for women and 36 grams for men per day.
“Sugar alone is very harmful to humans in large quantities,” said Dr. Shusterman.
“I tell people to give up soda and all that stuff and just go to regular seltzer. ‘It’s a lot healthier for you.’
Seltzer water is often calorie and sugar free.
Drinking too much water
Adequate hydration is critical to maintaining overall health, but there is such a thing as too much water.
“The amount of water should be about two liters per day.” No more, no less,” said Dr. Shusterman.
That’s about eight cups.
Dr. Shuster said one danger is water retention, which happens when the body can’t get rid of it quickly enough. This causes body parts such as ankles, feet, and hands to swell due to excessive inflammation.
It can also cause water intoxication, causing symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, headaches, confusion, disorientation, drowsiness and muscle cramps.
In some cases the condition can be fatal. Earlier this year, a mother in Indiana died after drinking four 16-ounce bottles of water in 20 minutes. That’s almost two liters that Dr. Shusterman recommended daily amount.
Add additional salt
“I would never have a salt shaker on the table,” said Dr. Shusterman.
It is obvious that consuming too much salt can have harmful consequences.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that more than 90 percent of Americans eat too much salt. The American Heart Association recommends 2,300 milligrams per day.
Nearly 500,000 deaths in the U.S. each year are attributed to high blood pressure, which has long been linked to excessive salt consumption.
Too much sodium can lead to a variety of other illnesses, including heart disease and stroke.
“I think the medical literature speaks for itself when it comes to high salt consumption and what they can do about the risk of high blood pressure, heart disease and other possible consequences,” said Dr. Ibrahim.
Vaping or smoking
Federal data suggests that about 14 percent – over 2.5 million – of American youth from 6th to 12th grade smoke e-cigarettes, while another study reported that one in 20 American adults smoke e-cigarettes smokes. In comparison, it is only one in ten tobacco smokers
The risks of smoking, such as lung cancer, are well known.
“Smoking is probably the number one early cause of death.” “Smoking is very, very harmful to you,” said Dr. Shusterman.
“If you have a cigarette once a week, you’ll probably be fine. But if you do it every day, your body simply absorbs too many of the carcinogens, destroying your lungs and creating a very bad cascade effect.”
But a growing body of research suggests that vaping also poses serious long-term health risks—particularly to the lungs and heart.
Earlier this year, the AHA warned that the cocktail of nicotine, thickeners, solvents and flavors in e-cigarettes poses a greater risk to heart health than smoking cigarettes.
Long-term exposure to diacetyl and acetylpropionyl, two flavoring additives, are associated with shortness of breath, chronic cough, asthma and congested airways.
‘[The risk] “This also applies to vaping, because while vaping is better than smoking, it still harms your lungs and affects your ability to exercise and maintain an active lifestyle,” said Dr. Shusterman.
“I think it’s better to avoid all these things that the body doesn’t need.”