We often hear that as long as everything’s in moderation, you can allow yourself to indulge in a lot of different things. A glass of wine with dinner is not too bad if it’s limited to one and having a candy or two can be part of a balanced diet. One shouldn’t also overdo things that are objectively good for you, such as exercise or hydration.
However, some things are always and forever a definite no-go. Having them as a part of your routine is simply too harmful to risk it.
But how does one differentiate between what’s okay to do and use and what is better to avoid? No worries, TikTok doctors are here to help. There has been a trend circulating on the platform in which doctors share what they never do based on their professional experience.
The following video is by Dr. Nicole Van Groningen, an MD at Cedars Sinai Medical Center. In it, she shares what her profession has taught her to avoid in daily life.
This MD shares what she personally avoids in her everyday life based on her professional experience
Image credits: Tima Miroshnichenko (not the actual photo)
"Things you will never catch me doing as a doctor"
Image credits: dr.nicole.vangroningen
"Waking up early to exercise"
"Do not let any influencers out here convince you that it's best to cut your sleep duration short so that you can go to the gym and work out and build a better body. Sleep is the primary wellness habit. End of story."
Image credits: dr.nicole.vangroningen
"Ride a motorcycle"
"I mean, enough said. There are so many safety features of cars today, the least of which is literally walls and windows and doors. Why would you give all of that up? All it takes is one trauma surgery rotation as a med student. That's enough. I'd never do it."
Image credits: dr.nicole.vangroningen
"Similarly, riding a bike without a helmet"
"There's just no reason not to and there are some specific screams from family members that I will never forget, and I'll never ride a bike without a helmet."
Image credits: dr.nicole.vangroningen
"I'd never blame people for their health status"
"I think people who do are trying to cling to a sense of control and say, oh, that person is sick because they did X, Y and Z thing. The reality is [stuff] happens and even the healthiest people get sick. It is no fault of their own. And even for people who do engage in activities that we consider risk factors for certain diseases, like smoking. No one deserves to get a horrible illness. No one deserves that."
Image credits: dr.nicole.vangroningen
"Similarly, I would never make an assessment of someone's health just based on how they look"
"There is so much more to health than outward appearance, and that needs to be said more."
Image credits: dr.nicole.vangroningen
"I would never go in the sun without sunscreen, preferably zinc oxide, not even for 5 minutes"
"And I admit this is part health reasons and part vanity. But fine."
Image credits: dr.nicole.vangroningen
"And I would never insist on doing things naturally or following the natural way and natural approach"
"I think natural is always best and nature knows best. And obviously, in some cases, a natural approach can be absolutely wonderful. But do you know what happened back in those natural times before the era of vaccines and antibiotics and other aspects of modern medicine? Nature dictated that a lot of people died."
Image credits: dr.nicole.vangroningen
Watch her whole video explanation here
There are many more things that doctors recommend avoiding
Unsurprisingly, this isn’t a full list of things many doctors would tell you to avoid. The most obvious one missing here is, of course, smoking. It increases your chances of getting so many different diseases, it’s surprising that it is still legal. And while vaping has not been studied as much, it’s definitely not a healthy habit either.
Another big offender that many doctors that deal with traumatic injuries mention is trampolines. What seems like an innocent, fun activity actually leads to a lot of awful and even tragic injuries. They are especially dangerous for children and parents are encouraged to completely avoid using them if possible.
Image credits: Antoni Shkraba (not the actual photo)
This list can go on and on
Some other common trauma-related things to avoid are table saws and chainsaws as well as all-terrain vehicles or ATVs. But injuries aren’t the only things that can cause you trouble. Another thing doctors ask people to avoid is fad diets. Sure, when they are supervised and prescribed by your physician, that’s fine. But if you decide to start keto or juicing on a whim, you might do more damage than good.
Some other things doctors personally avoid:
- Riding horses
- Skiing without a helmet
- Doing high-impact sports
- Using sunbeds
- Getting overworked and burned out
- Taking pain medications too often
- Sleep training babies
- Eating oysters if you’re in a landlocked country
- Not cutting up grapes for young children
- Using Botox before your late 40s
- Having unnecessary surgical interventions
- Drinking hot drinks when sitting on a sofa cross-legged (to avoid nether region burns)
Image credits: MedicAlert UK (not the actual photo)
And here's the opposite: good habits she picked up as a doctor that she would recommend to everyone
People shared their thoughts on the list in the comments
