Your Shopping Habits Are Harming You And The Planet
It is fairly clear to all that smoking tobacco is harmful to human health, but have you ever considered how it might affect the planet too? Many aspects of people’s lifestyles are not just harmful to themselves, but they affect the environment also.
But, much less obvious consumer habits are harming the health of you and the environment. Some of which may surprise you.
Is your lifestyle causing damage to the environment and your health?
You are undoubtedly aware that smoking can cause cancer in humans, as can secondary smoke. Yet, you may be less aware that tobacco smoking can cause other conditions such as osteoporosis.
Unhealthy diets also impact health and can cause problems ranging from depression to joint problems. Like many chiropractors, one, in particular, advises on nutrition and weight loss to help with back problems. Their website explains how a poor diet can lead to excess weight which affects joints and the spine.
Processed or sugary foods might cause inflammation. This can trigger mood disorders, and physical health conditions too. Below are some ways your lifestyle might be negatively impacting you and the environment.
Exfoliating
In 2021, the world’s body scrub market was valued at $20 billion. While millions of people like to exfoliate, overdoing it can lead to irritation, redness, and breakouts.
Besides this minor skin health problem, the body scrub itself is likely polluting the planet with microplastics. Over 90% of the plastics found in oceans come from microplastics, a common component of exfoliating scrubs and other beauty products. Many natural exfoliants such as oats will help to avoid microplastics.
Food packaging
When you feel a little blue it is easy to reach for the most convenient thing in the supermarket or get takeout. But, that very same pick-up can cause depression and weight gain. This can lead to other problems such as musculoskeletal conditions, or diabetes.
And these tasty snacks and treats come in packaging which often gets sent to landfill. In 2018, about 54% of packaging was recycled. This is impressive, but it still means around 45% of landfills in the US are made up of food containers and packaging.
Not choosing ethically sourced meat
The virtues of eating less meat are well documented. Nonetheless, not everyone is going to turn into a confirmed vegetarian. So, the best choice for those people is to evaluate where their meat comes from.
In 2021, around 99% of all chickens in the US came from battery farms. Factory farmed chickens live unnatural lives and are at higher risk of salmonella. To counteract this, they are fed with large amounts of antibiotics. This in turn gets consumed by you.
Factory farming also leads to water and air pollution, with increased releases of greenhouse gasses.
Why your shopping habits could affect the planet
Many food vendors like to offer their consumers good deals. At least in theory, they seem like good deals.
Fast food restaurants offer to supersize your meal at every opportunity, superstores display buy 1 get 1 free offers, and convenience stores sell fizzy drinks at sizes that humans aren’t even built to consume. The Double Gulp from 7-Eleven comes as a 50-ounce drink, and is beyond the requirements of the majority of people, no matter how thirsty they are.
Food wastage is a huge problem and one that is being encouraged by a large number of vendors through advertising and cheap deals.
US landfills are full of food waste. Food waste takes up 22% of landfills in America today. But, this isn’t the only consumer problem affecting the environment.
Many global corporations are failing to hit self-imposed targets to be greener. Starbucks, Amazon, and Samsung have all been pulled up on their failure to improve and become more eco-friendly.
What changes to your shopping can you make to help the environment and yourself?
In the case of companies such as Netflix, you can switch to another streaming channel that has a more sustainable business model. Switching to greener companies is a simple but effective change, and sends a message to the corporations to improve.
Buying local produce, and visiting farmer’s markets, can make things more transparent, and reduce carbon emissions from deliveries. You can also reduce your packaging waste by using shops that allow you to take your own containers to be filled.
Reducing meat, growing vegetables, and composting food waste will all help in some way. You’ll also be healthier for it. Cutting out processed food and eating more vegetables will likely lead to some weight loss, and cut down the risks of other conditions.
If you have been finding yourself fatigued, sleeping badly, or having back problems, it could be from your lifestyle. There are many hidden causes of back pain, and your diet might be exacerbating the problem.
Summary
There are big changes you could make to help the climate such as by installing a solar system. But, just switching to a green energy supplier will help to reduce the consumption of fossil fuels. In turn, you are helping yourself to improve air quality, and reducing carbon emissions.
You can be proactive though by using refillable containers to reduce packaging waste, buying only what you need and composting any food waste you have, and cutting out the smoking if you can.
All manner of health areas can be improved by a few changes from blood pressure to mental well-being to back and joint problems. The planet will be grateful too.