No matter how much you may pick on yourself for your flaws, you are beautiful, and it’s important that you keep this beauty around for a long time. After all, you only have one life, so you may as well look good while you’re living it, right?
Our lifestyles play a major role in the way we look, and certain lifestyle choices can have a negative impact on your appearance. In order to stay looking beautiful, here are five bad habits that you need to quit today.
1. Drinking Out of a Straw
Are you one of those people that uses a water bottle with a straw on a daily basis? If so, you may want to give it up and opt for the open container. Drinking out of a straw on a regular basis can ruin your appearance by creating lines around your mouth. The constant sucking motion you have to do in order to drink through the straw creates these lines, and there’s no real way to get rid of them. Although you may not think a few lines are a big deal, they will make you look much older than you are.
2. Squinting
If you are a squinter, you need to remedy the situation quickly. Squinting creates lines around your eyes that make you appear older, and it will take corrective surgery or a multitude of creams and ointments to diminish their appearance. If you are squinting because of bright lights, wear sunglasses or talk with your optometrist about ways to prevent light sensitivity. If you are squinting because you’re having trouble seeing, talk with your optometrist about getting glasses or contacts or getting a stronger prescription.
3. Smoking
This is a no brainer. Not only does smoking make you less attractive to people who don’t like smokers, it can also do some major damage to your body and appearance. Like drinking from a straw, the constant sucking motion you use to smoke a cigarette will place lines around your mouth. Plus, smoking stains and damages your teeth, and the only way to remedy this is through cosmetic dentistry like teeth whitening or dental veneers. Cigarettes also contain a variety of harmful chemicals, and when inhaled, these chemicals damage your body internally, which can have negative effects on your outer beauty as well.
4. Not Getting Enough Sleep
There are plenty of reasons you may not be getting enough sleep, but that doesn’t make it okay. Sleep helps to rejuvenate the body and provide the right amount of energy you need to tackle the day. Without sleep, your body becomes tired, and this can have an impact on your muscles. Plus, being tired also creates bags and dark circles around the eyes, and no amount of concealer seems to make these go away.
5. Sitting at a Desk
Many people spend their day sitting in front of a computer, and while this may be essential for your job, it’s damaging to your appearance. Sitting at a desk all day can ruin your posture and create issues like carpal tunnel syndrome. Having bad posture can result in you becoming hunched when you’re older. In order to combat this, be sure to get away from your desk as often as possible. You should also do some exercises to improve your posture.
Pictures:
Mirror by Allen Skyy
Sleeping by Pedro Ribeiro Simões