What if you could make a few minor adjustments to your routine, but the benefits for your physical and mental health would be profound? Recent publications of several intriguing research shed light on widespread practices that are bad for everyone. Here are a few things that researchers advise you to stop doing right away.
1. Stop spending so much time on Facebook & Instagram.
The American Journal of Epidemiology study found a negative correlation between using social networking and well-being. The study examined participants’ Facebook & Insta usage, self-reported physical and mental health, life satisfaction, and body mass index. Those who “liked” more items, clicked on more links, and updated their positions more frequently tended to score lower.
2. Stop spending time around people who harbor a terrible attitude.
Make sure to select your friends and companions since people influence one another. Researchers from Michigan State University’s psychology department tracked two preschool classrooms for an academic year and examined the personality features of three- and four-year-olds. They found that children who played with outgoing and diligent classmates developed similar traits over time.
3. Stop taking things too seriously.
Laughter therapy indeed exists. Additionally, studies have indicated that it helps enhance mood, sleep quality, and insomnia. It also benefits the central nervous, endocrine, immunological, respiratory, cardiovascular, muscular, and respiratory systems. Even if you don’t find something hilarious, you can still use it to your advantage. For one minute, try to simulate laughing. I recently did this while listening to a cancer survivor comedian, and I found the experience strange but energizing.
4. Stop reading in bed.
It’s not the most effective approach to sleep. The issue is not the book but the table lamp that makes it visible. Blue light, emitted by artificial lighting, inhibits melatonin secretion and a person’s circadian rhythm.
5. Stop sitting at your desk all day.
The adverse effects of a sedentary lifestyle on a person have now been documented by researchers at the University of California San Diego School of Medicine. They discovered that compared to women who are more sedentary, older women who sit for more than 10 hours a day without physical activity have cells that are eight years older physiologically. They advise moderate to strenuous physical activity for at least 40 minutes daily. As a result, your DNA strands’ telomeres remain long and can shield your chromosomes from degeneration.