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There are many things that are detrimental to our health, such as spending too many hours by the computer and too few exercising, for instance. But nowadays, people are quite aware of what can negatively affect their well-being, whether they do something about it or not.

Some things can take their toll on a person without them even realizing, though. Members of the ‘Ask Reddit’ community recently discussed the topic after a redditor asked them what is something super detrimental to one’s health that most people don’t realize. Quite a few netizens shared their thoughts on the matter, covering everything from shoes to bosses, and beyond, so scroll down to find them and see what other surprising things can be more dangerous than you would think.

#1

30 Of The Most Innocent-Looking Things That Could Have You Fighting For Your Life In Seconds Poverty.

Now of course we all know poverty isn't good for anyone but even now, I don't think we as a society realize just how bad it is.

It backs you into so many corners concerning your health. Worse food, less time for exercise, more stress in life, less money to address physical issues, it keeps you stuck in toxic environments (both mentally and physically).

It's just a lot of negative compounding interest.

tsh87 , Nicola Barts Report

#2

30 Of The Most Innocent-Looking Things That Could Have You Fighting For Your Life In Seconds Missing sleep

nobody333254 , Ivan Oboleninov Report

#3

30 Of The Most Innocent-Looking Things That Could Have You Fighting For Your Life In Seconds For the love of God drink some plain water and eat some vegetables...signed your x-ray tech & physicians lol.

JoyfullyMortified43 , Lisa Fotios Report

#4

30 Of The Most Innocent-Looking Things That Could Have You Fighting For Your Life In Seconds Losing a pet, 100%. Definitely not at all taken as seriously as other familial losses, and it should be. It can take a serious toll on your mental health AND physical health.

Routine_Western1191 , Olavi Anttila Report

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J MacDonald (macdonaldja)
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I ended up taking 3 days off work when I lost my black lab. Took me another 3 years until I was ready for another dog. My puppy brings me so much joy! (7 month - Corgi/Heeler rescue)

Corinne Wheeler
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I've always thought that there's a market for sympathy cards to send to people who have lost animals.losing a long loved pet is heartbreaking and should be acknowledged as such.

keyboardtek
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

If you think about it, as an adult you have moved away from your parents so they are no longer a daily presence in your life. But your dog is there for you every day. A pet's death can be worse than losing a relative you rarely see.

Hugh Cookson
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Took me over 2 years to get over having to have my friend Buster, a Jack Russell x Collie put to sleep as he had leukaemia. I still miss him 8 years on.

Dirk Daring
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Next month will be four years since my Nugget passed away. My heart completely shattered when I felt his stop beating. To this day, the memory will hit me like a lightning bolt, and I'll start crying all over again. Dogs ARE family.

Blondie23
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is sooooooooo true. My little Daisy died in 2018 and I still feel that grief deeply. I will still, out of no where, start to cry over it. It's painful!

A Happy Doggo
Community Member
1 year ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

it occurs in about 2% of people coming to the hospital for a suspected heart attack but only 1% of those cases are fatal (so about 14,000). Depression and other things related to trauma is probably more fatal

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Der Kommissar
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Someone once said; The happiest day of my life is when I got my dog. The saddest day of my life was when he passed away.

Kat Lyle
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

And it can still hurt 30+ years later if you grew up with that soulmate. *chokes*

Joshua David
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I'm getting prepared for my baby now. He hurt his tootie (feet if you're interested) and I can't do this. He's my best friend. Right now, I can't even think how I can ever replace his doggy love.

Happy Homemaker
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is because we don’t see pets as pets. Most people see pets as family members and when you lose a family member, it is devastating.

Jeremy James
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

When I had to say goodbye to my cattle dog, I took it hard. I checked into a motel with an unreasonable amount of vodka and cried for 2 days.

Nice Beast Ludo
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Awww that doggie in the photo is so sweet and fluffy. I would love him

Spencer's slave
Community Member
1 year ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Especially when that pet is your whole family. Too many "pet deficient" people don't understand just how much our 4 legged family members mean to us. A loss is a loss and some hurt more and longer than others. We all grieve, no matter who we lose. Much love to all pet parents who have lost their furry family member x.

Sleepy Panda
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I lost my Great Dane suddenly to heart failure in May. She was fine one minute, and then the next she was shaking and gasping for air. She was my heart and soul dog and I was absolutely devastated. I was suffering extreme abdominal pain afterwards, so my Dr sent me for an emergency abdominal CT scan because they thought it might have been either appendicitis or a ruptured ovarian cyst with the amount of pain I was in. It was honestly as painful as childbirth. There was nothing there, my GP had to tell me that I was suffering from grief induced psychosomatic pain. I had been trying to hold it all together for my family but the grief was coming out in its own way whether I wanted it to or not.

LooseSeal's $10 Banana
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Downvote me to oblivion, but as bad as losing a pet is, it is not on the same level as losing an actual human member of your family.

Mmmm
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

for some people it is. The connection people have to their pets is sometimes stronger than they can have with their family if they aren’t close.

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#5

30 Of The Most Innocent-Looking Things That Could Have You Fighting For Your Life In Seconds Comparing yourself to people. It's terrible for your mental health.

Dances28 , Solen Feyissa Report

#6

30 Of The Most Innocent-Looking Things That Could Have You Fighting For Your Life In Seconds Not brushing and flossing as often as you should. It’s not an aesthetic reason. Bad dental hygiene can kill.

penndelnj , Tima Miroshnichenko Report

#7

30 Of The Most Innocent-Looking Things That Could Have You Fighting For Your Life In Seconds loneliness

wye_naught , Leah Kelley Report

#8

30 Of The Most Innocent-Looking Things That Could Have You Fighting For Your Life In Seconds Shift work. Nights, followed by lates, followed by earlies. Physiologically so destructive.

I work for the emergency services so it's essential 24/7. The management are pretty good but we've been shafted on pay at a national level. Still attritional on the body.

Atiankup Report

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#9

30 Of The Most Innocent-Looking Things That Could Have You Fighting For Your Life In Seconds Short videos epidemic and almost every popular app/website has them now. Watching endless short videos of 10 seconds or less really messes up our attention span. Especially for children in their development stage.

ZaagKicks , cottonbro studio Report

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#10

30 Of The Most Innocent-Looking Things That Could Have You Fighting For Your Life In Seconds Not sleeping enough, working too much.


No, drinking gallons of coffee will not counteract the negative effects caused by these, neither will oversleeping on weekends.

Humble_Plane1924 , Mikhail Nilov Report

#11

30 Of The Most Innocent-Looking Things That Could Have You Fighting For Your Life In Seconds Stress and anxiety

ray458 , Andrea Piacquadio Report

#12

30 Of The Most Innocent-Looking Things That Could Have You Fighting For Your Life In Seconds Toxic relationship

Michael_Scott_1290 , RDNE Stock project Report

#13

30 Of The Most Innocent-Looking Things That Could Have You Fighting For Your Life In Seconds S****y people, especially if they are family.

bold-n-tired , Ketut Subiyanto Report

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#14

30 Of The Most Innocent-Looking Things That Could Have You Fighting For Your Life In Seconds Ongoing, chronic stress. It has physical effects that vary from person to person ranging from chronic sleeplessness, obesity, heart conditions and even death. A person's ability to adapt and be resilient is impaired. The motto of 'that which does not kill you makes you stronger,' is wrong and dangerous.

And yet we all go about our lives like chronic stress is a normal, laudable part of the human condition.

Ready-Yeti , Liza Summer Report

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#15

30 Of The Most Innocent-Looking Things That Could Have You Fighting For Your Life In Seconds Soda, the sugar in those is literally insane

MisterWapak , Martin Péchy Report

#16

30 Of The Most Innocent-Looking Things That Could Have You Fighting For Your Life In Seconds Lack of sleep and proper hydration.

Full_Caterpillar_950 , Adrienn Report

#17

social media

maff0000 Report

#18

30 Of The Most Innocent-Looking Things That Could Have You Fighting For Your Life In Seconds If you do a lot of sitting (like a desk job or a lot of commuting or trucking) and keep your wallet in your back pocket, you're going to f**k up your spine.

ThisIsTheCaptain , Emil Kalibradov Report

#19

30 Of The Most Innocent-Looking Things That Could Have You Fighting For Your Life In Seconds Trauma. It’s stored in our body and can cause detrimental damage physically and mentally. Feel free to look up studies.

momonkey25 , RDNE Stock project Report

#20

Painting without a respirator on.

We get memoriam emails anytime somebody in our union dies. EVERY PAINTER DIES IN THEIR FORTIES OR FIFTIES! And yet, none of them are wearing respirators. wtf.

KlutzyAd9112 Report

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#21

30 Of The Most Innocent-Looking Things That Could Have You Fighting For Your Life In Seconds Constant stimulus from our phones. Makes us bored easily and increases feelings of loneliness. Makes doing things without watching anything on our phones or being with someone a lot more mentally taxing.

Edit: LMFAO everytime I get a notification on this thread, I check my phone. Hehehe it’s 3AM now where I’m at… hehehe… We’re all f*****g doomed.

AngryPlasmaCell , Tim Samuel Report

#22

Narcissistic abuse. It can literally cause brain damage.

Fine-Loquat Report

#23

30 Of The Most Innocent-Looking Things That Could Have You Fighting For Your Life In Seconds Not doing things that you loved as a kid before you were concerned with adult responsibilities.

Stress is bad for your brain and a lot of people don't have healthy ways to relieve it.

716green , Sarah Dietz Report

#24

30 Of The Most Innocent-Looking Things That Could Have You Fighting For Your Life In Seconds Bad shoes.
A lot of people think that bad shies will cause foot pain, but they can also cause leg, hip, and back pain, and more.
I was amazed how good I felt after getting a professionally-fit pair of work shoes

goodiecornbread , Ketut Subiyanto Report

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#25

30 Of The Most Innocent-Looking Things That Could Have You Fighting For Your Life In Seconds Gatorade is really bad for your teeth.

sleepypanda59 , Mike Mozart Report

#26

30 Of The Most Innocent-Looking Things That Could Have You Fighting For Your Life In Seconds Lack of exercise. In addition to the numerous physical benefits of exercise, it also does wonders for your mental health and ability to cope with stress.

DeathSpiral321 , Jonathan Borba Report

#27

Cutting random stuff out of your diet when it's trendy. People unbalance their diet by just following some Instagram grift.

anon Report

#28

I'm not a medical professional and this is not medical advice.


Where are your neck and shoulders right now? Are they leaning forward and down? Long term, that causes a lot of damage and inflammation throughout the neck, shoulders, and upper back. If you have to force it to maintain good posture, it's not good posture. Try strengthening those back muscles. Make them do their job. You'll know you have good posture when you don't have to think about it.

Also for the love of God, most of us aren't in pain because we're old. You're in pain because you abused your body for decades before paying attention to the damage it caused. You're only as old as you feel.

Also, if you have full range of motion, don't stretch it. If it feels tight and you have full range of motion, it's not a mobility issue and stretching won't help it. In fact, if you stretch a joint that is already too mobile, that will cause inflammation. If your joint has too much motion, you need to strengthen it instead.

Also, does your lower back hurt? Try stretching your hip flexors. They're probably yanking your glutes and overstretching the lower back.

SingularWill Report

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#29

30 Of The Most Innocent-Looking Things That Could Have You Fighting For Your Life In Seconds Not stretching your body everyday, hell at least a few times a week.

spicegrl17 , Ketut Subiyanto Report

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#30

Just keep active as possible. Even if it's a walk a day around your street.

Upper-Dragonfly4167 Report

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#31

30 Of The Most Innocent-Looking Things That Could Have You Fighting For Your Life In Seconds Not keeping on top of dental hygiene. Not only does it affect your teeth and gums, gingivitis can affect your joints and cause pain, and the bacteria in your mouth goes into your bloodstream and can affect your heart. There was a period of time where I didn’t go to the dentist for three years (moved to a new state for college, extremely busy with schoolwork, never had a chance to find a new place), flossed maybe a few times here and there, wasn’t always brushing twice a day, and I was right on the cusp of having periodontal disease with irreversible consequences. In that time, I also had increasing joint pain in my hands, wrist, knees, and hips.

Don’t skip the dentist.

DesertIslandDisk74 , Sora Shimazaki Report

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#32

30 Of The Most Innocent-Looking Things That Could Have You Fighting For Your Life In Seconds Energy drinks. Yes, people know that they're bad, but not how bad. A lot of people drink them just about every day. Do that for 5-10 years and the effects are second only to hard drugs.

There's no quicker way to a heart attack or debilitating conditions like diabetes, arrhythmia and numerous other heart conditions.

Imagine consuming a Monster energy drink as a batch of raw ingredients. 14 teaspoons of sugar, 4 teaspoons of coffee, far too much vitamin B (up to 300% daily recommended). With an added 230 calories and 60 grams of carbs.

IMO the consumption of energy drinks should (and probably one day will) be restricted from underage persons like alcohol and tobacco are, and should also not be glamorized like it is.

EmkayUltraMagoo , Min An Report

#33

30 Of The Most Innocent-Looking Things That Could Have You Fighting For Your Life In Seconds Unyielding dedication to your job

thattallhorsegirl , Christina Morillo Report

#34

A lack of vitamin d. I never got out of the house except for going to work or the store due to mental health issues.

Now, some of my hair has fallen out, my immune system is compromised (which makes me scared for the harsh cold weather that’s about to come up), and I can feel it energy wise and in my bones.

I haven’t had a depressive episode since February or march of this year. Depression combined with anxiety (which anxiety just refuses to go away! 🙄) made me scared to get out of the apartment. I’d over think and I’d stay in.

I now feel a lot better mentally and have a s**t ton more clarity. Now, I WILL be getting out of the house next spring/summer, lol.

Edit: part of the reason why I was staying a recluse was due to me being narcissistically abused. So, I was dealing with the repercussions after I disowned my entire family.

waxystroll42 Report

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#35

Worrying about things you aren't capable of changing.

Suspicious_Heat_2900 Report

#36

Staying with the wrong person for too long. The mental stress it causes you isn't worth trying to save something that's broken.

la_descente Report

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#37

Mould. That s**t will f**k you up if you're constantly around it.

vikingapprentice Report

#38

Breathing polluted air

TightpantsPDX Report

#39

30 Of The Most Innocent-Looking Things That Could Have You Fighting For Your Life In Seconds Some basements produce Radon gas which comes from the soil. It is the second leading cause of lung cancer. Almost no one tests for it.

BitingArtist , Kdwk Leung Report

#40

30 Of The Most Innocent-Looking Things That Could Have You Fighting For Your Life In Seconds Working 40+ hours a week. It’s arbitrary and scientifically proven to be unhealthy

Smellmyhand , ELEVATE Report

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#41

being too connected to suffering happening to other people far away from you. you're not built to take on the collective misery of the world via news and social media. invest in your immediate community's well-being and leave the infinite pain of all existence to the select few who honorably make it their whole mission.

deusfaux Report

#42

Passengers should NEVER rest their feet on the dash of the car; because when the air bag does its thing, it has only one way to go. Several terrible things can happen at this point: 1. Your knees get pushed into your face, and I won't paint that picture. Or, 2. Your hips are dislocated.

BrandyBStamp Report

#43

Sugar

marrabld Report

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#44

Sodium! The average American eats 3,000-4,000mg a day, when the USDA only recommends a max of 1,500mg a day (with a real goal of 1,200mg a day.) Even reducing your daily intake by 1,000mg (meaning just going from 4k to 3k) can lower your blood pressure *3 to 4 mmhg!*

It's incredibly hard to limit sodium if you eat processed/convenience food. Even "healthy" foods have SO MUCH sodium. ~~It's a massive contributor~~ it increases your blood pressure and contributes to heart disease, stroke, etc.**

(Also, lots of people say "but your body needs sodium!"-- only 500mg. 1 teaspoon of salt is 2,300mg.)

EDIT: not a doctor, wording made it seem like I was implying I'm an authority. [here's the CDC saying it's bad!](https://www.cdc.gov/salt/index.htm#:~:text=Eating%20too%20much%20sodium%20can,year%20than%20any%20other%20cause.)

ryx107 Report

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#45

Negativity

TheCounsiller Report

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#46

Wearing shoes that are the wrong size or fit for your feet.

beitak Report

#47

Covid. It increases your risk of stroke and heart attacks. It exhausts your t-cells, which fight cancer. I suspect cancer rates will start increasing in 5-10 years.

nomoreusernamesplz Report

#48

30 Of The Most Innocent-Looking Things That Could Have You Fighting For Your Life In Seconds The cascading effects of drugs, particularly alcohol. If you get drunk one night, your chances of making bad dietary choices and skipping workouts increases for days.

If you’re drinking most weekends it really does kill your potential because you’re just not operating at 100% for the majority of your life.

People know that alcohol isn’t so great, but I highly doubt most people understand how much time it truly takes from you.

NoPerformance9890 , RDNE Stock project Report

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#49

Forcing autistic people to suppress stimming.

kelcamer Report