“It Was Horrific”: 20 Examples Of Incredibly Unhealthy Things Folks Have Seen Other People Do

Although we all probably know that smoking can cause cancer or that eating too much junk food can lead to obesity, most of us keep making the same unhealthy choices over and over. According to research, we tend to do this because it activates the parts of our brain responsible for pleasure.

The more we engage in harmful habits that we find fun, the more our brain gets wired to prefer those options. It then becomes harder to stop ourselves or choose a healthier path. Delicious flavors and tantalizing sensations make it difficult for us to quit the bad habits we’ve formed, although it can be done.

One of the most insidious unhealthy habits that a lot of folks find difficult to quit is the addiction to junk food. Its short-term effect is that it will make you gain weight, but the long-term effect can be observed on people’s sleep cycles, internal health, teeth, and even their ability to concentrate.

Folks often find this harmful behavior harder to quit because it so easily becomes a part of a person’s life. Instead of making healthier eating choices, it’s sometimes more convenient to get fast food or to go out to eat. All of this adds up and can put a huge strain on a person’s physical wellbeing.

Even though it might be tough to quit an unhealthy habit, it’s not impossible. It just takes some time and consistent effort to make happen. The first step is to identify your cues and triggers. For example, some people crave chocolate or salty food when they are feeling stressed or sad. Identifying how the feelings connect to the action is the first step to getting control over it.

Once you figure out what emotions are connected to your unhealthy habits, you can start replacing them. It’s hard to quit something cold turkey, but it's easier to slowly start doing other things instead of them. Replacing a few unhealthy foods with healthier and equally delicious options can help get you used to them over time.

If you’ve ever tried to break free from an unhealthy behavior, you probably know how difficult it is to make that happen. After a lot of trial and error, you might be able to make it happen, but many people find that it takes too long, and they give up. 

Our brains and nervous system are connected, and they send pleasure chemicals associated with different actions. So, since our brains prefer the path of least resistance, we often keep falling back into bad patterns, no matter how destructive they might be. As long as we are aware of the harmful behaviors we have, we can always work toward changing them.

Although we know that this list contains some of the most shocking and unhealthy things people have engaged in, we can probably figure out how they ended up at that point. Just because someone is engaging in self-destructive things doesn’t mean they’ll always be that way. There’s always hope for change, and hopefully, these people make it happen.

Have you ever witnessed someone doing something extremely unhealthy to their body? If so, do share your experience in the comments.