Canadians with unhealthy habits lose 6 years of life

There is no surprise that unhealthy habits can lead to many diseases and make us more likely to get sick. According to a new study, Canadians who are not taking care of their health live six fewer years of life than those who do. The researchers said that people with healthier habits lived 18 years longer than those who ate fast-food and drank soda.

Dr. Doug Manuel, the author of the study, said that unhealthy behaviours placed  a major burden on Canadian life expectancies. The researchers developed a new algorithm and concluded that most of the Canadian deaths are caused by smoking, but there are also some caused by inactivity or an unhealthy diet. Men seemed to be more affected by smoking while for women the biggest threat was inactivity.

What are the unhealthy habits for our health? First of all, eating junk-food. It can lead to obesity, diabetes and heart disease. If you want to lose weight, you should replace that food with fruit, veggies and whole-grain products. Another bad habit is spending a lot of time on the couch, in front of the TV or playing for hours on the computer. You should exercise more, do the physical activity. When you watch TV for too long you are eating snack foods, drink sugary drinks, which are harmful to your body.

Alcohol is also dangerous for all of us. It can higher the risk for liver damage, higher blood pressure and also it can cause cancer.  You can drink one glass of wine while having your dinner, but if you drink a lot, you should talk with a doctor or a support group that will help you. The most dangerous habit is smoking. It causes 30 percent of heart diseases deaths and cancer deaths.  It also raises the risk of high blood pressure and breathing problems. People who don’t smoke live longer than those who have this habit and they also are feeling better.

Be aware of the medication you are taking. Using sedatives for a long period of time can cause more problems for you. They are increasing the risk for high blood pressure heart attack and many other diseases.

There are many unhealthy habits people can have. Those are just the most important of them. If you want to live longer and feel well, you should start taking care of your diet, stop smoking and do more activities.

Image source: Wikipedia