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Interestingly, alot of people may find it difficult to know that, they eat but not in the right way. People have different eating styles that may be suitable for them according to their schedule and work pattern. But, it may interest you to know that many of these eating habits are not good for the human health.
Some of these eating habits, are the reasons why many people are suffering from some type of diseases. This is because these eating habits tends to alter the normal metabolism or digestive reactions in the body.
It is then expedient, that you don’t just eat food, but you should eat in the right way. Come to think of it, if eating is one of the essential ways of living as a human, then you should know what to eat, how to eat and when to eat.
In this article, we will be looking at 10 eating habits that you may have been used to, but are dangerous to your health.
1. Skipping Breakfast:
If I must confess this is one of the most common bad eating habits I have noticed around. This is because many working class people are usually busy in the mornings, trying to meet up with work time, so that they won’t be late.
In the bid of trying to be meet up with time, they end up skipping breakfast or rather postponing breakfast to later in the day. This may be understandable, but it does not negate the fact that breakfast is one of the most important meal in the day.
When you skip breakfast, you reduce your energy, concentration and productivity levels. Eating foods rich in protein and low in fats, will speed up your metabolism, prevent you from overeating during the day and also manage your weight. It will also help you live longer, feel better and ultimately help you reduce the risk of having some diseases.
2. Late Night Eating
This usually occur when you have been too busy during the day, and you didn’t have the time to eat earlier before going to bed. Some people may also do this, while they are awake at night and are feeling bored.
Eating directly before going to bed, doesn’t give your body enough time to digest the food properly, before lying down. Therefore, it is important to stick to an earlier and more decent time of eating.
3. Not Drinking Enough Water Throughout The Day
When you have the habit of not drinking enough water on a daily basis, you put your entire body system at risk. This could cause headaches, difficulty in concentration and a worsened mood.
Ensure you keep a can of water readily in your hand. Please try not to misinterprete hunger for thirst. Likewise, don’t quench thirst with drink. Drinks are good, but can never take the place of water.
4. Using Too Much Salt in Your Food:
Many of us are so used to throwing salt in our foods without even tasting it. With an ever increasing rate of hypertension and strokes, Africans have been encouraged to watch their salt intake.
Read labels of food materials very well, if there is sodium content in it, it means it should be taken with caution. It is advisable that we start using herbs, lemon juice, pepper, olive oil and spices such as cinnamon, curry, cayenne pepper and cumin for our food, instead of the too many mixed spices, stock cubes, packet soups and sauces. Processed meats and tinned foods are often too high in sodium, get fresh produce as much as you can.
5. Emotional Eating
All of us do engage in this in one form or the other, but this little habit can be dangerous to your health. Whenever you having the urge to eat, before trying to satisfy the craving. Ask yourself, am I truly hungry? Become aware as to what is stirring up the hunger.
Are you stressed or bored, if so then replace eating food at that time, with an activity such as breathing exercise, playing game or watching a movie.
6. Eating Too Much Fried Foods
The major component of many fried food is fat. Fat is the most energy dense of all the macronutrients. Per gram of fat, you are provided with 38KJ of energy. This is times two of what you get when you eat carbohydrates and protein.
When choosing fat sometimes, we want to eat more monosaturated and poly saturated fats and less saturated and trans fats. However, take note that frying is not a good option. Whether you use the best virgin olive oil, the moment it reaches a very high temperature trans fats are formed, which is dangerous to the human system. The best type of food you should eat, should be grilled, baked, boiled or steamed food.
7. Poor Portioning of Food
It is very vital to eat the right portion of food. Don’t eat too much of food and don’t eat too less. Try decanting bulk food into smaller portions. Don’t eat too much, than your body will need. Your plate can also trick your eyes, choose a plate with a larger rim resulting in a lot less food being required to fill it.
When dishing your food, follow the simple guide of 1\2 plate of non-starchy vegetables, 1\4 plate protein and 1/4 plate starchy food.
8. Taking Drinks Instead of Fruit Juice
Many people usually like taking Drinks instead of fruit juice. These drinks are usually loaded with alot of sugar far more than the content of sugar in fruits juice. Although drinks may provide you with sugar, but fruit juice are filled with alot of natural vitamins and minerals, which are beneficial to your health. Avoid too much of drinks, take fruit juice instead.
9. Grocery Shopping on an Empty Stomach
When we are hungry we want to eat anything we see and this is not good for our weight. Try eating an apple before going out for shopping. Don’t shop on an Empty stomach.
10. Avoiding Food the Entire Day
This can be due to time constraints or lack of resources. However, this affects your health negatively because your body metabolism is slowed down and results to over eating before you go to bed, leading to weight gain.
Try eating 5-6 small regular meals and snacks throughout the day, 2-3 hours apart. Foods such as fresh fruit, yogurt, lean biltong, nuts are good foods that can be enjoyed on the daily basis.
