No matter how much you exercise and manage your diet, poor fundamental habits can harm your health.
Here are some harmful morning habits to watch out for.
1. Drinking Cold Water
Drinking cold water right after waking up might make you feel refreshed, but it can excessively stimulate the autonomic nervous system and strain the heart. This is especially risky for older adults. It is better to drink lukewarm water after waking up.
Drinking warm water or lemon water in the morning is recommended. Ascorbic acid in lemons stimulates metabolism, helping to burn more calories than usual. In lemons, citric acid and vitamin C enhance skin and blood vessel elasticity while reducing spots and blemishes. Lemons also provide various benefits, including anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer, fatigue recovery, detoxification, and a reduced risk of kidney stones.
2. Setting Multiple Alarms
Setting multiple alarms is another unhealthy habit. Repeatedly turning off alarms and returning to sleep builds fatigue and increases stress hormone secretion. Being startled awake by an alarm raises stress levels, increasing the risk of metabolic syndrome and depression. Developing a habit of waking up with a single alarm is essential.
Professor Shin Chul of the Biomedical Research Center at Korea University Ansan Hospital told Health Chosund in an interview, “Alarms forcibly wake you, which is inherently harmful to the body. It may even lead to insomnia.”
He warned, “Repeatedly waking up startled by loud alarms can cause chronic activation of the sympathetic nervous system, leading to spikes in blood pressure and blood sugar, tension, and other physical responses. This increases the risk of cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, metabolic syndrome, and depression.”
A better solution is using light instead of sound. Sunlight streaming through a window is ideal, or you can use a light alarm with a timer feature. Professor Shin also suggested, “Using white noise, such as the sound of water, or playing your favorite music at a moderate volume can help minimize the physical stress caused by loud alarms.”
3. Eating Sugary Foods
Many people choose sugary bread, donuts, or fruit juice for breakfast. However, sugar and fructose rapidly raise blood sugar levels, burdening the pancreas and liver. When blood sugar levels drop quickly afterward, hunger sets in, leading to overeating at lunch. For breakfast, foods rich in protein, vitamins, and minerals, such as eggs, tofu, fish, or warm milk, are better choices.
4. Skipping Moisturizer After a Morning Shower
Skipping moisturizer after a hot morning shower can cause your skin to age faster. Areas like the neck and the back of the hands are especially prone to dryness due to thin skin and fewer sebaceous glands. Hot water exacerbates dryness, making wrinkles more likely. If you neglect to apply moisturizer as carefully as you do on your face, wrinkles can deepen, and skin elasticity can decrease.
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