“Please Stop Doing This”: 30 Health Hazards We All Ignore, According To Doctors

While we all know the big causes of illness — viruses, bacteria, poor nutrition, and lack of sleep — there are a variety of lesser-known, seemingly mundane factors that contribute to health problems. On Reddit, a question was posed to medical professionals asking, “What are some of the most mundane reasons most people are unaware of that make them sick?” The responses provided a fascinating and eye-opening look at everyday habits, environments, and unnoticed factors that can negatively impact our health. Simple changes — like staying hydrated, practicing better posture, and ensuring your sleep environment is clean — can go a long way in improving your health and preventing illness. By paying attention to these seemingly mundane factors, you can create a healthier, more balanced lifestyle.

Scroll below to read some answers posted in the thread.

#1

Image source: Reprobate726, Nynne Schrøder Ok so this is not related to sickness but injury - after a certain age (different for everyone) you should get rid of every slippery pair of socks, uneven area rug, or any other tripping hazard in your house. It's very easy to trip and fall in the dark trying to get to the bathroom and a lot of people have major complications trying to recover from a broken hip or other leg injury. Small trip hazards in your house may not seem like a big deal, but they could lead to an injury that you never recover from and it's a very common problem.

#2

Image source: No_Lion_8923, A. C. People don’t realize how their partners make them mentally sick.

#3

Image source: mewmewnmomo, LightFieldStudios Psych nurse here. Don’t stop your meds because you’re “feeling better”. Why do you think you feel better.

#4

Image source: Fianna9, Darina Belonogova Finishing antibiotics. Always finish the full course you are prescribed. You think k you are better. But the bacteria may not be dead and it’s gonna come back stronger.

#5

Image source: athrowawayhandle, peus80 Not brushing your teeeeeth, mouth bacteria can lead to a hundred different head to toe issues and can even k**l you.

#6

Image source: Elphababa If you have sudden unexplained weight loss PLEASE go get checked out. I can not begin to count how many people (especially middle aged and older) I've triaged for some other symptoms drop a random 'oh yeah and I've lost xx amount of lbs in a month' and more often than not it turns out to be CANCER. You're not turning into a skinny legend, it's cachexia ?.

#7

Image source: lhollmann, drazenphoto Leaving a tooth infection without treatment. It can cause so many bad things.

#8

Image source: ghoulxgrl22, Sweet Life If your toes start turning black from untreated diabetes, it’s not going to get better on its own, it will only continue to get worse, and lead to irreparable damage including the loss of the foot entirely. idk if people also realize that aspirating things (something “going down the wrong tube” as most people say) causes pneumonia. also idk if this counts but i can say that after multiple months doing xray at an inner city level 1 trauma hospital, i will never ever get on a motorcycle, four wheeler, atv, dirtbike, none of that. nope no thanks im good.

#9

Image source: Crayshack, Maurício Mascaro Not drinking water. So many people feel like s**t but only drink coffee, Coke, and Corona. People like this live live on a onife edge of minor dehydration where the tiniest bit of exertion feels impossible. If you actually drink the water your body needs, it fixes all sorts of minor issues.

#10

Image source: ContextSensitiveGeek, Nathaniel Yeo Pharmacy technician here. Don't stop taking your blood pressure meds. If your blood pressure is good, now is not the time to stop your meds. They are working.

#11

Image source: Chilly-Dawgs, Omelnickiy 1. Drinking. Cirrhosis is very very mean. 2. Wash. Your. Hands. I don’t mean a little squirt of soap and then immediately rinse it off, I mean the whole 20 seconds. Noro/sapovirus, C. Diff, trust me, you don’t want it.

#12

Image source: thesevenleafclover, YuriArcursPeopleimages Listening to influencers who are not medically trained. I’ve watched ads on TikTok where an influencer will pour two packs of liquid iv into a cup to make a new flavor. Or whatever the hell the raw milk and unpasteurized nonsense is. You can’t lemon and cayenne water your way out of hyperlipidemia, but you can erode your gastric lining.

#13

Image source: atelectasisdude, Natalia Blauth Derm PA here- please moisturize your skin. Wearing lotion is not only a “girly” thing to do. Dry skin can lead to itchy skin, which can lead to chronically itchy skin, which can lead to intense scratching and can leave open wounds and sores. Itchy skin can drive a person bonkers. I see it everyday. The easiest way to prevent this is to wear lotion.

#14

Image source: stephanonymous, Getty Images Untreated sleep apnea is absolutely terrible for you. Over time it can lead to heart problems, diabetes, stroke, and even shorten your lifespan, to say nothing of what chronic lack of quality sleep can do for your immediate mental and psychological health. Snoring all night every night is not normal. Get over yourself and use the CPAP.

#15

I had a Type 1 diabetic patient in medical school who stopped taking her insulin because it would help her lose weight quickly. Her chronic high blood sugars instead shut her kidneys down and blinded her in one eye. . Image source: Prettyladydoc

#16

Image source: PumpkinSpiceMayhem, Jezael Melgoza NOT a medical professional but so far there's been three entirely unrelated people in my life who have casually gone Pants On Head Crazy and then found out they had black mold in their homes. For the love of god, if you start noticing somebody's lost the plot, lovingly convince them to do black mold testing. If it's not that, their thyroid may have gathered its little coat and hat and suitcase and headed out the door.

#17

Image source: NextAdhesiveness3652, Clay Banks I’ve had so many male patients with rectal problems because they will not wipe after using the bathroom. One guy told me it’s gay to touch your butt. Another said he just don’t do that wipe thing. Another said he didn’t care. Totally preventable disease state.

#18

Image source: flaired_base, Susan Wilkinson Not. Enough. Fiber.

#19

Image source: fumblingvista, Cats Coming Not following a doctor's advice to cut something from your diet. For example, people who say, 'Doc told me to stop eating gluten and dairy. So I had pizza for dinner, but it’s ok because i took a lactaid.' Just..no. That’s not how that works. That’s not how any of that works.

#20

Image source: Cautious_Parsley_898, Sina Saadatmand Not being especially cautious as you get older. About 15 years ago, when I became a nurse's assistant, the nurse teaching the course told us that for many elderly people, a fall was the beginning of the end. Small falls that younger people deal with constantly can break a bone in an older person, and their body has to fight harder to heal when they're older, which overdrives the immune system and makes it easier to get sick in other ways.

#21

Image source: Caibee612, Polina Kuzovkova Swimming with contacts in. Every time I dispense fortified vancomycin and gentamicin (compounded by our IV room, strong antibiotic) eyedrops, in the chart it turns out that the patient was swimming with contacts in. They get super nasty infections.

#22

Image source: nosyNurse Vaping. I have pts that repeatedly see allergists/pulmonary bc they “don’t know why i’m wheezy all the time and it feels like i can’t breathe.” Nasal sprays, antihistamines, allergy pills, 3-4 different nebs…all while denying they vape. It’s gross.

#23

Image source: PenguinSwordfighter, Greg Pappas I could go to a doctor with an axe in my head and the first things he would tell me are: Don't smoke, exercise more, eat healthier. Whats often overlooked is I think is: Sleep more, work less.

#24

Image source: SoleIbis, Getty Images

Not necessarily sick but long car rides without breaks can absolutely cause blood clots, which can possibly lead to a pulmonary embolism if left untreated.

#25

Image source: CNSFecaloma, Towfiqu barbhuiya Physician: 1. Alcohol 2. Obesity 3. Indiscriminate over the counter supplement use 4. Motorcycles 5. Not wearing a helmet 6. Not treating your high blood pressure because “you feel fine.” 7. Not taking care of your teeth 8. Poverty.

#26

Image source: Steambunny, Getty Images Do NOT let your dog lick an open wound! Their mouth is full of bacteria, they don't have "clean mouths" like we were told when we were kids. Also, please take your meds before coming to the hospital. Just let us know what you took. No reason to skip your BP meds... Bathroom injuries yall... I cannot tell you how many people come to the ER because they vasovagaled on the toilet pushing too hard. ALSO make sure your toys have flared bases :D.

#27

Image source: BumblebeeOfCarnage, Tima Miroshnichenko Pay attention when something changes or something new happens. Even minor issues that don’t go away or continue to get worse should always warrant a trip to the doctor. I’m a medical student and I put off going to the doctor for embarrassing urinary symptoms for 6 months. I finally saw someone a couple weeks ago and they think I may have MS. I’m so mad at myself that, if I do have MS, I could’ve started treatment months ago and prevented ongoing nervous system damage.

#28

Please stop drinking energy drinks.. they are terrible for you! Image source: Crash7805

#29

Just because the health condition is common in your family, doesn’t make it “normal” to have that condition. eg young woman from a family all living with type 2 diabetes, gets diagnosed with gestational diabetes and pretty much ignores it because it’s “normal” in her family. She’s told over and over to monitor her BGLs and keep them under x level with the insulin etc she’s been prescribed, as high sugars are not only harmful to her but also to her fetus. Lots of education given on all of this and specifically told that her baby could die if she’s not vigilant. Still does her own thing and to no one’s surprise: stillbirth. So senseless and avoidable. Image source: IncoherentKiwi

#30

Image source: Lunavixen15, Polina Zimmerman I work at a dentist, people improperly taking or prematurely stopping antibiotics. When people start but don't finish antibiotics (usually because they feel better), the surviving infection grows resistant to those antibiotics, so future courses become inefficient or don't work at all. #TAKE THE WHOLE COURSE. Infections in your teeth and jaw have a short path to your brain, and leaving that infection untreated (especially if it's asymptomatic or not causing pain) can cause bone loss, which can very much detrimentally impact things like implants and even your jaw strength.