Does it feel as if every time you pick up your phone, someone on the internet has invented a new thing that’s bad for you? We asked doctors and researchers about what lifestyle changes we should actually make to stay healthy.
Does it feel as if every time you pick up your phone, someone on the internet has invented a new thing that’s bad for you? On Instagram, women are ripping off their “toxic” Lululemon leggings and tossing them in the garbage.
On TikTok, the aspartame in Diet Coke is so bad for us that we might as well call it a “fridge cigarette.” Every other ad I stumble upon suggests I need to throw out each of my possessions so that I can avoid cancer, inflammation, and infertility. If you keep scrolling, you’ll come across enough health-scare content to make you want to live in the woods, phoneless, where you might encounter a bear, yes, but at least not plastic. Instead of going off the grid, we asked doctors and researchers our burning questions about what lifestyle changes we should actually make to stay healthy and what we can scroll on past.or headlines circulate that whip up fear about the contents of scented candles. But they’re probably not actually poisoning you, says Dr. Brian Christman, medical spokesperson for the American Lung Association. In most cases, the amounts of any harmful chemicals they give off will be small. Burning candles around your home all day, though, can release soot, small amounts of nitrogen dioxide and carbon monoxide, and other toxic gases, which could irritate your throat and lungs, strain your cardiovascular system, and make it harder to breathe. He suggests keeping the wicks trimmed short and sticking with 100 percent coconut, beeswax, or soy candles. Look for those that are labeled “USDA Certified Biobased” or “Made Safe.” And keep your space ventilated. For an alternative that won’t affect your indoor air quality, he suggests simmering spices on the stove.After a handful of studies over the past decade — some in rats and some in humans — raised questions about links between the artificial sweetener aspartame and cancer, scientists took a closer look. In 2023, the World Health Organization and other groupsthere was “no sufficient reason to change” the existing guidelines for acceptable daily intake of aspartame: An adult weighing around 150 pounds would need to drink more than nine cans of soda to exceed the limit.If you’re really worried about cancer, you should probably think more about how much meat you eat than about your diet-soda consumption. You don’t have to quit it entirely, but many experts recommend limiting yourself to one to three servings a week. Some experts are primarily concerned that it’s high in saturated fat, which can increase your “bad” cholesterol, boosting your risk for heart disease. Others point to the compounds it contains that have been linked to inflammation, a risk factor for diabetes, and cancer.because cooking them directly over an open flame forms compounds — heterocyclic amines and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons — that are known carcinogens. But you can actually decrease your risk by marinating your protein for at least 30 minutes before cooking. The American Institute for Cancer Researchcombining vinegar, lemon juice, or wine with oil, herbs, and spices. This sort of marinade can reduce the formation of harmful compounds even more than lowering cooking temperature.of anything that falls into this category, which includes chips, sodas, flavored yogurts, deli meats, plant milks, and breakfast cereals. A 2024linked their consumption to more than 30 health problems, including deaths related to heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and some mental-health issues including anxiety and depression. And apublished last year found that women who consumed more ultraprocessed foods had an increased risk of colon polyps, which can be precursors of colorectal cancer.It might be, says Dr. Sara Hahn, a California dentist. Fruit-flavored drinks like LaCroix typically have citric acid or other acids. To reduce your risk, you can drink unflavored seltzer, but that contains some carbonic acid . To be even safer, sip through a straw. And don’t drink right after brushing your teeth. Instead, Hahn says, brush about 30 minutes after consuming one of these beverages, once your mouth’s pH has risen back to normal.recently that they feel the narrow studies published on the topic don’t actually justify the widespread concern. What we can all agree on, though, is that we simply don’t have enough information and need more large-scale research examining the effect of plastics on the human body. But even the more cautious camp says the dietary benefits of seafood, which is a good source of lean protein, likely outweigh the risks of any plastics consumption, says Sarah Sajedi, a nanoplastics researcher and doctoral candidate at Concordia University. Farmed fish could contain higher concentrations of plastics than wild-caught, so try to shop for the latter whenever possible.It’s true: The “natural” stuff could have more plastics than mined salt, says Matthew Campen, a toxicologist at the University of New Mexico. But the ocean is a big place, so it’s unlikely that a high concentration of plastic is lurking in salt, and you’re probably not using that much of it. Instead of cutting out any particular food item, experts say, the best thing to do is to avoid eating or drinking anything that comes into contact with hot plastic: thinkWhat about all my poly-blend underwear and leggings? Do I need to replace them with all-cotton versions? The anxiety here is twofold: Clothing made from synthetic fibers, like polyester and nylon, can contain both microplastics and PFAS, or “forever” chemicals. Campen says you probablylook for natural fibers like organic cotton, not because plastics from synthetics could be absorbed through your skin but, rather, because you’re more likely to inhale them. “We each have our own personal cloud,” he says, like the “Peanuts” character, which can cause health problems like immune suppression and interfere with hormones, most of them rinse out from garments after a couple of washes. Campen’s rule of thumb: When it comes to microplastics and PFAS, you should be more worried about what you eat and drink than what you wear.Yes, says Dr. Philip Landrigan, who specializes in public health and pediatrics at Boston College: Most receipts printed on thermal paper contain bisphenol A, also known as BPA, or a related chemical, BPS, both of which can interfere with the endocrine system and cause a variety of health issues. For most people, exposure from touching the occasional receipt probably won’t be harmful. But for store employees or others whose jobs require frequent handling of receipts, he recommends wearing gloves., like arsenic or lead, in more than a dozen popular tampon brands — even some labeled “organic” — is solid, says Dr. Nathaniel DeNicola, a fellow of the American College of Obstetricians & Gynecologists in California. But DeNicola says we don’t actually know if the metals are being absorbed into the body from tampons. The Food and Drug AdministrationIf you’re really worried, you can consider alternatives like sanitary pads, which, yes, still sit in contact with your skin, but there’s less direct opportunity for absorption than with tampons, he says. Or you could try a. that found that women who were exposed to cleaning products as part of professional-cleaning work or home-cleaning had faster lung-function decline, an effect that researchers said was comparable to years of tobacco-smoking. Cigarettes are definitely worse, says Christman. He has some questions about the study’s design and findings, like what accounts for the stark disparity in damage experienced by women versus men , which he says can’t be explained away by a gendered division of cleaning tasks. But he said it raises important concerns about the effects of cleaning products, and he agrees fumes from those that contain ammonia or chlorine can irritate your airways. Make sure you ventilate by opening windows. Without adequate ventilation, “ammonia gas will dissolve in the airway lining fluid and can damage small airways or cause acute lung injury,” Christman says. You can also look for cleaners without ammonia or chlorine, Landrigan says; brands like Seventh Generation have a good variety.Same deal here. “You can trust your sense of smell,” Christman says. The “new car”–like odor from furniture that dissipates over time contains some irritants. These might be released from foam padding, glue adhesives that are used in construction, finishes, and flame-retarding chemicals. A strong and lasting odor suggests a release of higher levels of gases, such as formaldehyde, benzene, and toluene. Just as you would after cleaning, you should keep the room well ventilated — even for several weeks, he says.Frequent exposure to dry-cleaning chemicals such as perchloroethylene and trichloroethylene has been associated with the increased risk of liver, kidney, and bladder cancers as well as some types of lymphatic cancers, Christman says. The Environmental Protection Agency has limited or is phasing out these compounds, but some dry cleaners still use them. Organic dry cleaners tend to use ecofriendlier methods, he says. To reduce your risk, take your clothing out of any plastic packaging and let it air out for a few hours before wearing, Landrigan says.If you’re losing weight and not working out, then this could be an issue, says Dr. Jyotsna Ghosh, an obesity-medicine specialist at Johns Hopkins Medicine. This isn’t because of the GLP-1 medications themselves but because weight loss can result in a decrease in bone density because there’s less pressure on the bone. Ghosh is among athat suggested some compounds from the sunscreens that use chemicals to filter the sun’s harmful rays can pass through the skin’s barrier, sparking online chatter that continues today. If you’re using chemical sunscreens, some of the compounds might be absorbed through your skin, says Dr. Marisa Garshick, a dermatologist in New York. But there’s not enough evidence that that’s necessarily bad for us, she says. Still, if you’d rather not take the risk, go for mineral sunscreens, which tend to sit on top of the skin’s surface, she says. (She likesNo. Despite persistent rumors, studies suggesting links between aluminum-containing antiperspirants and health problems like breast cancer have been small or otherwise not compellingly designed, according to the American Cancer Society — and Garshick agrees. The FDA says aluminum compounds within a certain range of concentrations are safe and effective for this purpose. Without aluminum, the product won’t do anything to block the release of sweat.It’s a good idea to protect the skin on your hands from any UV radiation you’re exposed to in the drying process. Dermatologists recommend UV-blocking fingerless gloves with an SPF of at least 30, and you can findto your hands and fingers beforehand. You want something labeled “broad spectrum” and, ideally, a PA++++ rating, which specifically indicates UV protection. A dry manicure — without soaking your nails in acetone or hands in water — will help prevent the sunscreen from being removed.have shown that nail-salon dust — not specific to gel manicures but a result of the various services salons offer — contains high levels of chemicals that could be reactive and potentially harmful when inhaled. Most at risk are the nail technicians or other salon workers, who are exposed nearly daily. For this group, recommendations include PPE like surgical or other particle-filtering masks. And if that’s not enough to worry about, there’s also a small risk of developing an allergy to the acrylates used in gel nail polish. If you give yourself a lot of gel manicures at home, you might consider getting them done by a professional instead.about the risks of gas stoves. They work by burning natural gas, which gives off a mix of carbon dioxide, water vapor, and some harmful pollutants. Those include nitrogen oxide, a respiratory irritant and asthma trigger, and benzene, a carcinogen. A recent Europeanestimated that gas-stove-related indoor air pollution from nitrogen oxide was responsible for some 44,000 premature deaths in the United Kingdom and Europe and more than 1 million annual cases of asthma. If ripping out your gas stove and swapping it for an electric one isn’t an option, you can focus on ventilating your space with a range hood if you have one and by opening windows. You can also purchase electric burners. And remember: Watch out for that red meat you’re cooking.This New Scent Is the Couture of FragranceLast Time This Major Astrological Transit Happened Was the Civil WarThe Aspiring Actor Ghosting a Reality StarMary Katrantzou Made the Case for a Phone-Free Night OutWe did the rich-aunt math on what’s truly elevated, what earns the splurge, and what’s a hard pass.$5 Gloves, Half-Off Puffers, and More Great Deals I Found This WeekAs a beauty editor, my personal “how to win at life” heroine is Rossellini — as she’s aged, she’s gotten cooler and more interesting.New York
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