Don't Make These 5 Major Health Mistakes!
You wouldn't run with scissors or stick your hand into a tankful of hungry piranhas, but these five common mistakes could be just as dangerous to your health. Here's how to fix them fast:
Mistake 1
You lose and regain the same (insert number!) pounds again and again. If you've lost 10, 20, or more pounds so often that you're wearing out your fat and skinny wardrobes, you're one of the two in five women who yo-yo diet.
What you're risking. Chronic problems such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and diabetes. Swiss researchers report that when you're overweight, bad metabolic changes happen -- your body has trouble processing blood sugar and controlling blood fats, for example -- that can overpower the health benefits of your thin phases.
The fix. Practice the fine art of maintaining your weight: Eat well, walk daily, step on the bathroom scale weekly. Modify your "calories in, calories out" balance before you pack on too many pounds.
Mistake 2
You think you're not really a smoker. You just have a cigarette or two when you're out with friends. About 15% of America's 45 million smokers are "occasional" smokers, lighting up six or fewer times a day.
What you're risking. Being able to breathe. Even "lite" smoking increases your odds for lung cancer -- five times if you're a woman, two times if you're a man -- Norwegian scientists report. Puffing just one cigarette a day also triples your risk for fatal heart disease.
The fix. Set yourself up to successfully quit (a lot easier for social smokers than serious nicotine addicts). For at least 1 month -- about how long it takes to create a new habit -- meet friends in places that don't allow smoking. That gives you lots of options, because smoking is banned almost everywhere these days.
Mistake 3
You have what sounds like a heart-healthy seven drinks per week -- but you only drink on weekends. Three drinks on Friday night and four on Saturday doesn't give you alcohol's "one a day" bonus for your ticker.
What are you risking? Your life. Yep, moderate one-a-day drinkers cut their risk of heart attack by 33%, but according to University of Buffalo researchers, those benefits vanish for women who get tipsy even once a month. Their heart attack odds triple compared with nondrinkers.
The fix. Stick with no more than one drink a day. Want more? Try stretching it out -- mix seltzer with half a glass of wine or make the second beer nonalcoholic.
Mistake 4
Making one tube of fancy designer sunscreen last all summer. Even in sun-drenched Australia, home to the planet's highest rates of the deadly skin cancer called melanoma, most people put on just half the sunscreen they need, experts say.
What you're risking. Your looks. You'll get more and deeper wrinkles faster; skin cancer's more likely, too. It takes at least a full ounce (enough to fill a shot glass) applied all over to deliver the SPF protection the label promises. Your ears and the tops of your feet are typically where sunscreen application is most skimpy.
The fix. Buy the largest bottle or tube you can find of any reasonable drugstore SPF 30 sunscreen that has a proven UVA blocker (go for nanoparticulated zinc oxide or titanium dioxide). Use a lot, and reapply often. If you do, you'll cut your melanoma risk by 50% to 70%, say Aussie researchers.
Mistake 5
You think a sweaty bike helmet will ruin your hair and your mood. Only 18% of cyclists wear helmets most of the time, and comfort is a big reason. Being unaware of how well helmets protect your brain is another.
What you're risking. Everything. As in, your brain and your life. Head injuries account for 62% of bicycle-related deaths. Even minor head injuries can cause long-lasting postconcussion syndrome, which includes irritability, poor memory, headaches, and an inability to concentrate . . . need we say more?
The fix. Try on as many helmets as you need to (the sales person will get over it) until you find one that's comfortable . . . then, give yourself time to get used to it. You will.
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