Bad habits die hard, goes the popular saying and the secret to living long is forming good habits and breaking free of the bad ones. Habits may start out harmlessly good until a man builds a castle of comfort around it. When this happens, it becomes a bad habit and surely becomes difficult to break.

Habit, according to Cambridgedictionary.org is something you do often and regularly, sometimes without knowing that you are doing it.

Some habits are good while others are already bad in themselves. In this article, I will be sharing six habits you should quit if you want to live a long and healthier life.

1. Smoking

Smoking is the act of inhaling burnt plant material. This act is dangerous to the body as it damages the organs of the body. According to betterhealth.vic.gov.au there are six carcinogenic substances found in tobacco that are harmful to the body. They are tar, the black particles suspended in tobacco smoke, carbon monoxide, (a poisonous gas that is odorless and colorless), oxidizing chemicals, metals and radioactive compounds. All these put together causes cancer, damages the blood vessels, stains the teeth, fingernails, lung tissues and ultimately leads to death. 

Most often, men who smoke most likely picked up the habit from their teenage years because they don’t want to be laugh at or feel out of place by their peers who indulge in the act. Also, it is observed that people who inhale cigarette smoke are also at risk. The best policy therefore is stay away from smoking or hanging around those who do.

2. Reckless drinking 

Drinking, like smoking, is also a habit that is harmful to the body. Heavy drinkers are susceptible to damaging their liver because the intake of alcohol causes the liver to overwork itself in order to expel the alcohol from the blood. When this happens continuously a man’s liver will be damaged, giving rise to liver cancer. Throat cancer is also one of the aftermaths of alcohol consumption. Aside from the damage alcohol does to the body, it also affects a man’s sexual appetite. It can decrease it or aggravate it depending on the body system of the man. A man who is a heavy drinker is also at the risk of harming himself as well as others in his irrational behaviour when he has drunk himself to stupor. Taking alcohol is like deliberately exposing your body to be invaded by alcoholic induced terminal illnesses.

3. Lack of adequate rest

Your body needs enough rest to rejuvenate itself. But when this is not the case, a man can develop cardiac arrest which may ultimately lead to death if urgent medical attention is not available. This is the reason there should be a balance between working and resting. Overworking is not a proof of strength, rather, it is a show of stupidity and absolute disregard for the body.

4. Substance abuse

Many men in the society have lost their lives due largely to substance abuse. Others are battling to regain their sanity in psychiatric hospitals or rehabilitation centres. Many reasons have been attributed to the rise in substance abuse across the world. Some of them are depression, a desire to feel high or even be accepted in the circle of drug users.

5. Eating late at night 

As much as eating is beneficial to the body, eating late does more harm than good to the body. The obvious reason is the difficulty associated with the body’s inability to break down food because it does not have enough time to separate the nutrients the body needs and expel the waste from the body.

6. Not drinking enough water

Staying hydrated is beneficial to the body. Doctors advise that men should take 15.5 cups of water. That is 3.7 Liters per day. Even more than half of the body is made of water. Yet the boys need water to function optimally.

Conclusion 

Once a bad habit is formed, breaking free from it becomes extremely difficult. Going for therapy could help you break from any habit. The desire to change and the willingness to remain that way is the discipline that every man caught in this web needs. If you are guilty of one or more of the habits shared above, it is high time you broke free from them.

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