By Zoe Papadakis From Newsmax

We all know certain things are bad for our health. Smoking, binge drinking, and overindulging in fatty foods are all unhealthy — but it doesn’t stop there.

Drinking too much water, wearing cheap sunglasses, and taking the window seat on a plane are just some of the other surprising things that can cause damage to your body. To ensure optimal health, it’s best to avoid these nine unhealthy habits:

1. Wearing wireless earbuds. Airpods and similar devices are designed to fit snuggly in your ear, but they could increase the probability of infection, audiologist Brian Taylor told Best Life. You could also be increasing your risk of hearing loss, but this has nothing to do with volume. “Use of earbuds can increase the likelihood of cerumen [earwax] impaction — and when left unattended, this can cause hearing loss,” Taylor said.
2. Filling up on gas. You cannot avoid having to fill your car with gas, but the more time you spend at gas stations, the more damage you are likely doing to your body. “If you are pumping gas and smelling the fumes, you are inhaling toxic chemicals that can damage the DNA in your lungs,” physician and a scientist William W. Li told Best Life. “The solution: stand downwind [when you pump], or go electric.”
3. Eating late at night. Research suggests that eating later in the evening can be bad for your health. One reason is that it may interfere with your sleep, as late-night meals could lead to indigestion, EatingWell noted. You are also more likely to make unhealthy food choices later at night.
4. Thinking about stressful events. It’s not always easy to stop the mind from drifting back to events in your life that were particularly stressful, but doing so is an unhealthy habit you need to kick. Studies have found that people who spend more time revisiting those stressful events are more likely to be depressed, Verywell Health reported. Pay attention to your thoughts and when they start to gravitate toward negative memories, try to distract yourself or replace the thoughts with ones that make you feel happy.
5. Choosing the window seat on plane rides. Choosing the window seat may offer the best views, but it comes at a cost. “When you’re in a plane, the UVB radiation most associated with sunburn is blocked by the windows of the plane, but the UVA radiation is not,” said Matt Gass, a spokesperson for the British Association of Dermatologists, according to Best Life. “As you are much closer to the ozone layer, the sun’s rays are much more harmful.”
6. Lunch at your desk. It may be convenient to eat lunch at your desk, but eating while working can actually be bad for your health. This is because you are not paying attention to your food and just mindlessly gulping it down. Eating this way could leave you feeling unsatisfied, and in turn, could lead to afternoon binge eating, EatingWell explained.
7. Wearing cheap sunglasses. You may think you scored a great deal by purchasing sunglasses that look just like the designer brands at a fraction of the price, but these sunnies may not be offering you total UV protection, Best Life said. Paying extra for the more expensive brands will buy you full protection against the sun’s harmful rays.
8. Browsing Facebook. Mindlessly scrolling through social media conveniently kills time, but it is also an unhealthy habit that can be harmful to your mental and physical well-being. Researchers believe that social media can lead to feelings of isolation and increase your risk of depression, Verywell Health noted. Invest in real face time with friends and family to boost your mood.
9. Drinking too much water. We all know you can drink too little water, but too much? Who would have known? According to sports medicine specialist Natasha Trentacosta, drinking too much water can be bad for your health because it can dilute the sodium in your body. In the worst case scenario it can lead to hyponatremia, which is low sodium levels in the blood.

© 2019 Newsmax. All rights reserved.

For more on this story go to: https://www.newsmax.com/health/health-news/unhealthy-habits-lifestyle/2019/09/11/id/932212/?ns_mail_uid=6952f1f9-507d-4a20-8cc0-0a1db158d76e&ns_mail_job=DM53503_09172019&s=acs&dkt_nbr=010124mmi2lo