Unexpected habits that make you age faster

1. Constant stress

We can’t escape stress, but we can try to curb our feelings of over-anxiety. Not only does anxiety make us unhappy, anxious, and tired, it actually ages us. The constant release of cortisol, norepinephrine, and adrenaline can weaken our immune system, raise our blood pressure, and affect our sleep, memory, and mood.

What you can do: Fight anxiety with positive thinking. When you feel anxious, take deep breaths. Engage in some physical activity like walking or doing some yoga. Meditation can also help. Don’t let anxiety take over you.

2. Not using sunscreen

Sure, you remember to apply sunscreen when you go to the beach, but when you drive to work, walk the dog, or run errands, you may forget. Regular exposure to the sun can cause significant premature aging. Australian researchers recently found in a survey of 900 people that people who used sunscreen every day had more beautiful, smooth, and youthful-looking skin. So skipping your daily sunscreen not only increases your risk of skin cancer, it also weakens your cells and makes your skin more susceptible to bruising and damage.

What you can do: Look for a broad-spectrum sunscreen that protects against UVA and UVB rays with an SPF of at least 15, preferably 30. Use a coin to spread the sunscreen evenly over your face and other exposed areas of your skin every day. Once you make sunscreen a habit, it only takes a few minutes a day to look five years younger.

3. Sugar addiction

We know that sugar has many benefits, but health experts now believe that sugar is silently aging us. Sugar damages our skin by drying out the natural collagen and elastin, leading to dull, saggy, wrinkled skin. This process also causes dark circles and puffiness under the eyes, making us look older. These symptoms start around the age of 35 and increase rapidly after that.

What you can do: It's hard to cut out sugar completely, but try to keep your sugar intake to a minimum. Aim for no more than 10% of your daily calories to come from sugar. Read labels and try to limit your sugar intake.

4. You think exercise is just for weight loss

Whether you need to lose weight or not, exercise will help you look younger. Exercise, even as little as 30 minutes of walking a day, can reduce inflammation, lower blood pressure, improve memory and concentration, increase muscle tone, and most importantly, reduce chronic stress. Plus, regular exercise will help ward off weight gain and protect your muscle and bone density.

What you can do: Take a daily walk with a friend or pet, join a sport with a group of friends or take a class. Get a workout buddy or find a sporting event to join. These can inspire you to exercise every day and keep you active.

5. Anger or hatred

Holding onto a grudge or anger not only damages your mental health, it also ages you quickly. If you can let things go, you'll look years younger. Research has shown a link between forgiveness and physical health. A study published in the "Journal of Behavioral Medicine" found that a lack of forgiveness reduces sleep quality, increases stress hormones, raises blood pressure and blood sugar, leads to weight gain, and increases the likelihood of needing medication. In the short term, learn to let go, and you may live longer.

What you can do: Realize that hatred and resentment hurt you more than they hurt you. Forgiveness doesn’t mean you have to be a victim or hold onto a belief. Let go and you can be happier and live longer. And that’s the ultimate revenge.

6. You spend too little time with friends

When you’re young, friends may be a priority in your schedule, but as we get more responsibilities, work demands, partners, raising children, and family obligations take up a lot of our time. Make time for friends. Studies have shown that strong friendships are a positive predictor of longer life and family. Strong, meaningful friendships can help alleviate depression and stress, as well as reduce the risk of many chronic diseases, all of which age us.

What you can do : Spend time with friends more often, at least once a week. Keep in touch through modern means of communication if you can't do anything else. Check in with an old friend and renew a long-standing friendship.

7. Stick to the remote control

A study of 11,000 adults in the "Journal of Sports Medicine" found that every hour spent in front of the TV shortens your life by 22 minutes or more. People who watch more than six hours of TV a day live an average of five years less than those who don't watch TV. And while you can't change a sedentary job, you can control your TV time.

What you can do: The simplest solution is simply to watch less TV. There are a few tricks you might want to try. Try getting up and walking around on the weekends.

8. You are lazy to "make love"

Sex not only makes you feel happy, but it also has amazing health benefits. Research shows that an active sex life can help boost your immune system, lower blood pressure, relieve pain, and reduce depression. The Journal of the American Medical Association even notes that sex can even reduce the risk of certain cancers. During sex , chemicals like endorphins, serotonin, and mood-boosting immune chemicals not only make you healthier and happier, but can also make you look younger.

What you can do: Getting more sleep and exercising can increase your sex drive and energy. You can also try reading erotic or romantic material, or changing your outfit to get in the mood. Cut back on your favorite TV shows to make more time for love.

9. Use a straw to drink beverages

Regularly drinking coffee or juice through a straw can eventually lead to wrinkles around the mouth, similar to the shape of a smoker's mouth. Starting tomorrow, for a smoother mouth, drink directly from a cup or mug instead of using a straw.

10. Overuse of heaters

Using too much artificial heating can dry out the air in your home. This dries out your skin and hair, robbing your body of moisture and creating an environment conducive to more wrinkles. Keeping the temperature low at home and dressing warmly can help you save on heating costs and stay youthful.

11. Bad sitting posture

Poor sitting posture can cause the spine to curve, putting undue stress on the muscles and bones. This can lead to pain, fatigue, and potentially permanent deformity. Keeping the spine straight and the chin tucked in is recommended to combat aging.

12. Low-fat diet

Omega-3 fatty acids are essential for keeping skin supple and plump. However, a low-fat diet can lead to premature skin aging by depriving our bodies of essential components. When changing your diet to lose weight, you need to be careful to ensure that you don’t lose both weight and youth.

13. Lack of sleep

Adults need at least seven hours of sleep each night. Experts warn that lack of sleep can reduce energy and mental performance, and lead to weight gain. Insufficient sleep can also damage the skin by increasing cortisol levels, which exacerbate inflammation and negatively affect collagen production.

A 2013 study by Case Medical Center (USA) found a correlation between sleep quality and skin aging. This study revealed that lack of sleep will slow down the skin's recovery process from harmful agents from the environment. For beautiful skin, prioritize getting enough 7-9 hours of sleep every day.

14. Frequent use of headphones

If a young person keeps asking, “What did you say?” like a 100-year-old, they’ve probably been using headphones all day. Common causes of hearing loss include high decibel output from everyday items like headphones or hair dryers. Keeping the volume down can help protect your hearing longer.