What’s the first thing you do when you wake up? Is it a habit to grab a cup of coffee to boost your energy right away? American physical therapist Chris Boettcher, known for sharing health advice on X (formerly Twitter), recently shared “10 bad habits that may affect the health of the whole body,” based on relevant research. These habits can lead not only to weight gain but also blood sugar spikes, anxiety, insomnia, and even cancer, with his post gaining over 760,000 views in less than five days. The discussion sparked by his post included a focus on one particularly detrimental habit: drinking coffee on an empty stomach. Let’s see which of these behaviors you might be falling into.
Bad Habit 1: Drinking coffee as soon as you wake up
You naturally lose water through breathing, sweating, and other bodily functions during sleep, leading to a state of dehydration when you wake up. Drinking diuretic coffee at this time can further dehydrate your body. Chris Boettcher advises you to rehydrate first thing in the morning and enjoy your coffee followingward. Wellness expert Chen Yueqing suggests drinking 200 to 300ml of warm water following waking up to prevent the risk of blood clots caused by dehydration upon waking.
Bad Habit 2: Using your phone as soon as you get up
Do you reach for your phone to check messages immediately following waking? Chris Boettcher believes that “playing with your phone is the worst way to start your day.” He recommends getting up and engaging in other activities before checking your phone. American neuroscientist Emily McDonald explains that people’s subconscious is highly suggestible when they first wake up, and exposure to phone content can have a significant psychological impact and disrupt dopamine secretion.
Bad Habit 3: Eating refined starch and sugar for breakfast
A survey by the Taiwan Cancer Foundation found that Taiwanese people commonly eat breakfast combinations that are high in carbohydrates and lack nutritional balance. This can lead to blood sugar spikes, causing low energy levels in the morning and increasing the risk of weight gain. Rapid blood sugar fluctuations can even contribute to feelings of depression and frequent hunger throughout the day. It is advisable to create nutritionally balanced breakfasts based on protein and fat. As most breakfast meals lack sufficient vegetables, try to consciously increase your intake of dietary fiber through fruits and vegetables.
Bad Habit 4: Not Eating Enough Protein
Are you getting enough protein? Chris Boettcher emphasizes that protein plays a crucial role in muscle growth and repair, and it maintains normal immune system function. It is generally recommended to consume 0.8g of protein per kilogram of body weight. For example, a 60kg person should aim to consume 48g of protein daily.
Bad Habit 5: Sitting for more than 6 hours a day
Prolonged sitting and poor posture can easily lead to pain, obesity, and increase the risk of chronic diseases. Office workers should make a conscious effort to get up and move, stretch, and walk a little every hour to mitigate the harmful effects of prolonged sitting. Nephrologist Hong Yongxiang has identified sitting for long periods as one of the top ten bad habits that contribute to cancer risk. Studies have shown that prolonged sitting increases breast cancer risk by 8%, colon cancer risk by 25%, prostate cancer risk by 8%, rectal cancer risk by 7%, endometrial cancer risk by 29%, and ovarian cancer risk by 29%.
Bad Habit 6: Drinking “liquid calories” such as soda
Chris Boettcher emphasizes that drinking sugary drinks like soda and juice is essentially “directly injecting sugar into the blood vessels.” These “liquid calories” lack dietary fiber to slow down sugar absorption. Quitting sugary drinks can greatly improve weight loss and overall health.
Bad Habit 7: Breathe through your mouth
Habitual mouth breathing can lead to dry mouth, increased oral bacteria, tooth decay, and infections. It can also affect sleep quality, cause jaw recession, and potentially impede facial development in children. Orthodontist Cai Yijun suggests that those with this habit try to “sip a sip of water” whenever they notice themselves breathing through their mouth as a reminder to keep their mouth closed. With practice, this habit can be gradually corrected.
Bad Habit 8: Constantly replying to emails and messages
Chris Boettcher recognizes that constantly addressing online issues can be stressful. The nervous system needs time to transition into a relaxed state. Scheduling time to turn on Do Not Disturb mode or simply turning off your phone can allow for proper rest.
Bad Habit 9: Drinking with Dinner
Enjoying a drink in the evening following a long day is a common way to de-stress for many people. However, Chris Boettcher reminds us that consuming alcohol with dinner, beyond contributing to weight gain, can affect sleep quality and even increase the risk of chronic diseases and cancer.
Bad Habit 10: Swiping on mobile phones and looking at screens before going to bed
The blue light emitted by mobile phones and computer screens disrupts the biological clock and affects melatonin secretion. Chris Boettcher recommends refraining from using these devices for an hour before bedtime. Engage in relaxing activities like reading, meditation, or stretching to wind down. Avoid using electronic devices while lying on your side or half-sitting in bed as this puts added strain on the spine. Lying on your stomach and using your phone can also lead to shoulder pain, hand numbness, and neck stiffness.
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10 Bad Habits That May Affect the Health of the Whole Body and How to Break Them
What do you do first when you wake up? Is it a habit to drink a cup of coffee first thing in the morning to boost your energy? American physical therapist Chris Boettcher, who often shares health information on X (formerly Twitter), recently quoted relevant research to share “10 bad habits that may affect the health of the whole body.” These habits not only lead to weight gain, but may even cause blood sugar spikes, anxiety, insomnia, and even cancer, with more than 760,000 visits in less than 5 days. Watching, it sparked a lot of conversation, and one of the landmine habits he listed included drinking coffee on an empty stomach! Let’s see which behaviors have you fallen into?
Bad Habit 1: Drinking coffee as soon as you wake up
Since you will continue to lose water through breathing, sweating, and other factors during sleep, you will be in a state of dehydration when you get up. Drinking diuretic coffee at this time may cause the body to become more dehydrated. Chris Boettcher reminds you that you should replenish water first following getting up, and then enjoy coffee. Health guru Chen Yueqing also suggested in a speech that everyone drink a cup of 200 to 300ml of warm water following getting up to prevent the threat of blood clots caused by lack of water in the body when getting up early.
Bad Habit 2: Using your phone as soon as you get up
Do you turn on your phone to check messages immediately following getting up? Chris Boettcher believes that “playing with your phone is the worst way to start your day” and recommends walking around and doing other activities before looking at your phone. American neuroscientist Emily McDonald analyzed that people’s subconscious is easily suggestible when they first wake up, and the content they are exposed to will not only have a major psychological impact, but may also disrupt dopamine secretion.
Bad Habit 3: Eating refined starch and sugar for breakfast
A survey by the Taiwan Cancer Foundation found that the breakfast combinations most commonly eaten by Taiwanese people are almost all high-carbohydrate foods with unbalanced nutrition, which can cause blood sugar to spike, leading to lack of energy in the morning and making people more likely to gain weight. When blood sugar levels fluctuate rapidly, it makes people even more depressed. Feeling hungry frequently throughout the day! It is recommended to create a nutritionally balanced breakfast based on protein and fat, and it is most likely not to eat vegetables in breakfast, so you can consciously increase the intake of dietary fiber such as fruits and vegetables!
Bad Habit 4: Not Eating Enough Protein
Are you eating enough protein? Chris Boettcher said that protein can help muscle growth and repair, and maintain the normal function of the immune system. It is generally recommended to consume 0.8g of protein per kilogram of body weight. Taking a 60kg person as an example, he should eat 48g of protein every day.
Bad Habit 5: Sitting for more than 6 hours a day
Sitting for long periods of time and poor posture can easily cause pain, obesity, and increase the risk of chronic diseases. Office workers should get up and move, stretch, and walk a little every hour to consciously reduce the harm of sitting for a long time to the body. Nephrologist Hong Yongxiang has named the top ten bad habits that cause cancer in the past. Sitting for a long time is on the list because studies have shown that sitting for a long time will increase breast cancer by 8%, colon cancer by 25%, prostate cancer by 8%, and rectal cancer by 7%, 29% endometrial cancer, 29% ovarian cancer risk!
Bad Habit 6: Drinking “liquid calories” such as soda
Chris Boettcher believes that drinking sugary drinks such as soda and juice is equivalent to “directly injecting sugar into the blood vessels”! This type of “liquid calories” does not have any dietary fiber that can slow down the absorption of sugar. It is recommended to quit sugary drinks as soon as possible, which can have a huge positive impact on weight loss and overall health.
Bad Habit 7: Breathe through your mouth
Always unconsciously accustomed to breathing through the mouth will make your mouth dry, increase the reproduction of oral bacteria, cause tooth decay, infection, and other problems. It may also affect the quality of sleep, even cause the chin to retract, and affect the development of the child’s face! Orthodontist Cai Yijun also wrote an article and suggested that if you have this kind of habit, you can try to “sip a sip of water” at any time to remind yourself not to open your mouth unconsciously. After practice, it is expected to gradually improve.
Bad Habit 8: Constantly replying to emails and messages
Chris Boettcher believes that constantly dealing with problems online anytime, anywhere can be stressful. People’s nervous systems need time to transition to rest. Schedule a time to turn on Do Not Disturb mode, or simply turn off your phone!
Bad Habit 9: Drinking with Dinner
After a hard day’s work, having a drink in the evening and appreciating the hard work of the day is a stress-relieving time for many people. However, Chris Boettcher reminds that in addition to making you gain weight, drinking alcohol at dinner may also lead to poor sleep quality and even increase the risk of chronic diseases and cancer.
Bad Habit 10: Swiping on mobile phones and looking at screens before going to bed
The blue light emitted by mobile phones and computer screens can also interfere with the biological clock and affect melatonin secretion. Chris Boettcher recommends not using these products one hour before going to bed. You can pass the time and relax through reading, meditation, stretching, etc.! Especially leaning on the bedside or half-lying on the bed and swiping the phone will increase the burden on the spine. Swiping the phone while lying on the stomach is also more likely to cause shoulder pain, hand numbness, neck stiffness, and other problems.
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