Are Your Habits Helping or Hurting You?
We all have habits. They are part of our daily lives. A habit is a repeated action that becomes an automatic behavior, with little to no thought. From getting out of bed and brushing our teeth to what and when we eat, these routine behaviors become part of us. Some habits are good, others bad. For example, flossing your teeth regularly is good for your health. But if you skip flossing, that’s a bad habit because it can have negative effects on your health.
Whether good or bad, habits are hard to break. You can thank your brain for that. These routine behaviors are formed by a process called habituation. That means your brain gets better at performing a specific action over time.
How good habits support wellness: While bad habits such as smoking or non-stop snacking can have a negative impact on you, positive habits can improve your health and well-being. Here’s why habits can be a good thing:
- Efficiency. Habits help make us more efficient. That means it requires less thinking and effort for your brain to do that task. Daily activities are easier because they become automatic. That gives your brain more energy for other tasks.
Excerpted from Brown Health
