10 Stereotypes About Being Healthy That Can Actually Be Harmful

Jul 29, 2018 by apost team

In recent years, a healthy lifestyle has become a goal for more and more people and even a widespread trend in the mainstream media. The importance of a well-rounded diet, exercise, and getting enough sleep can have positive impacts on our physical and mental health. But with the popularity of healthy living increasing, some untrue stereotypes have also become commonly believed. It’s important to be aware of what can actually make you healthier and what is just a trend and could potentially be harmful. The list below covers some false stereotypes about healthy living that you probably believe!

It’s a common belief that the more red coloring you can find in salmon meat, the healthier it is to eat. Although many breeds of salmon, such as the chum and sockeye, have this intense red color, many other healthy and expensive salmon types actually should be paler. It should be a relief when you see white streaks in the fish meat, as they mean that no additional coloring was added to your food. The color of the salmon does not necessarily indicate if it's fresh or healthy, and it’s important to remember that much of the fish sold at grocery stores have already been frozen.

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You’ve probably seen ergonomic chairs and couches advertised to solve your backaches. However, research shows that using the wrong type of ergonomic furniture, or using it incorrectly, can actually cause deterioration of components in your back. Using this furniture correctly involves very specific instructions, including strict posture and sitting positions, and it might take a long and attentive trial period for you to see if the furniture actually works or does not.

When a doctor prescribes some sort of detox for you, such as a special diet or even an enema, it’s important to follow their advice. But when we begin to take our health into our own hands without consulting a medical professional, problems may arise. Positive benefits from detoxes, fasting, and juice cleanses haven’t been proven. But issues and negative results such as vomiting, liver failure, and stomach issues have been determined by research.

Although people have been using microwaves for decades, people still believe false stereotypes about them. Research has actually shown that products cooked in a microwave oven do not lose their vitamins and nutrients like most people believe. They also do not receive radiation as commonly thought. It’s actually more beneficial to use the microwave to cook foods when on a diet, because of the lessened need to use oil in your cooking procedure.

Nutritionists have proven that the vast majority of our vegetables should not be peeled. You should leave the skin on your cucumber, tomato, peppers, and zucchini. Removal of the skin also means removal of many of the positive nutrients, such as potassium, vitamin C, vitamin K, carotene, magnesium, and our body’s much-needed fiber. Just make sure to wash the vegetables thoroughly.

The University of Chicago has done research that shows that getting recovery sleep on the weekends allows your body to bring insulin sensitivity back to equilibrium, a process that gets disrupted due to a lack of sleep, overall reducing your body's risk for diabetes. Allowing yourself to sleep in on the weekends can also reduce your risk of early death and positively contributes to your health in countless ways.

Scientists from Canada have determined that the plastic bottles we drink water from can actually carry huge amounts of bacteria. Even bottles that we use more than once can be difficult to clean and harbor bacteria in microcracks. Water spoils very quickly when left in a plastic bottle because the bottleneck is never disinfected after touching your lips.

Research has disproven the theory that you should do basic stretching before training, as static stretching can actually instigate your injuries and will not “warm up” your body. It might make you more flexible, but it weakens your muscles, reduces your endurance, and can have detrimental effects on strength training overall. Opt for dynamic stretching instead.

Experts in psychology have actually found that positive thinking reinforcements and believing you’re capable of anything can actually be detrimental to your overall mental health. These processes alter your reality perception, don’t account for negative consequences, and can actually lead to developing conditions such as anxiety and depression when you reach an inevitable failure. Negative thoughts can actually help us become more realistic and sensible.

Australian and British researchers have proven that drinking copious amounts of juice, like we do when participating in a trendy detox diet, is comparable to causing the same amount of harm to your body as when you drink large amounts of soda. Whether fresh or packaged juice, the large amounts of sugar in the beverage leave you at risk for obesity, diabetes, and other disorders.

These myths are widely believed but can be disproven with science. It's important to be aware of the truth behind health fads, and we shouldn’t always listen to trendy diets or habits to fulfill a healthy lifestyle. Which one of these stereotypes did you believe? What are your best tips for healthy living?

Our content is created to the best of our knowledge, yet it is of general nature and cannot in any way substitute an individual consultation with your doctor. Your health is important to us!