From smoking cigarettes, to consuming soda to the most shocking of all – flossing, these habits could be causing more harm to our environment and your temple than you realized. Smoking and soda seem to be more of a given but who knew flossing could have a harmful impact on the environment. Check out three habits you may not have realized could be harmful.
Smoking cigarettes
A significant number of the population enjoy having a cigarette. One can depend on nicotine after starting the habit due to various reasons like stress, travel, peer pressure amongst many other scenarios. This is one vice that many people may struggle with.
Did you know that the smoking industry has indulged on decades of animal testing? Cigarette butts are also non-biodegradable, and a study on cigarette litter co-authored by Thomas Novotny, a professor of public health at SDSU, concluded that they are the worst contaminant of our oceans. The cherry on top is that cigarettes can also contain castoreum, a yellowish exudate from the castor sacs of mature beavers.
Thankfully, if you do smoke, there are ways you can still satisfy your cravings for nicotine. There are several alternatives to cigarettes like pouches, gums, and lozenges. These contain nicotine while being tobacco-free and many are suitable for vegans. If you decide to buy ZYN nicotine pouches online, you’ll be happy to know they are vegan, which means that their ingredients are limited to a plant based fiber base, nicotine, and flavoring, so that you can enjoy them with a clear conscience. Nicotine gum by Nicorette is also promoted as being suitable for vegan users, giving those who follow a plant-based diet many options to help them quit.
Affirmations and personal health care practices can also help you overcome cravings and replace it with a new habit, like pausing for a deep breath. Once my Swami in India once said why do we enjoy smoking? Because we are pausing and enjoying pranayama. So, we can just pause and enjoy pranayama. This may be easier said than done. ;)
A significant number of the population enjoy having a cigarette. One can depend on nicotine after starting the habit due to various reasons like stress, travel, peer pressure amongst many other scenarios. This is one vice that many people may struggle with.
Did you know that the smoking industry has indulged on decades of animal testing? Cigarette butts are also non-biodegradable, and a study on cigarette litter co-authored by Thomas Novotny, a professor of public health at SDSU, concluded that they are the worst contaminant of our oceans. The cherry on top is that cigarettes can also contain castoreum, a yellowish exudate from the castor sacs of mature beavers.
Thankfully, if you do smoke, there are ways you can still satisfy your cravings for nicotine. There are several alternatives to cigarettes like pouches, gums, and lozenges. These contain nicotine while being tobacco-free and many are suitable for vegans. If you decide to buy ZYN nicotine pouches online, you’ll be happy to know they are vegan, which means that their ingredients are limited to a plant based fiber base, nicotine, and flavoring, so that you can enjoy them with a clear conscience. Nicotine gum by Nicorette is also promoted as being suitable for vegan users, giving those who follow a plant-based diet many options to help them quit.
Affirmations and personal health care practices can also help you overcome cravings and replace it with a new habit, like pausing for a deep breath. Once my Swami in India once said why do we enjoy smoking? Because we are pausing and enjoying pranayama. So, we can just pause and enjoy pranayama. This may be easier said than done. ;)
Drinking soda
Soda is refreshing, bubbly and can seem like the perfect drink for oily snacks. However, did you know that many soda products contain red food dye, not to mention tons of sugar and other coloring additives. A write-up by Mashed discusses this red food dye created from beetles and how this can be found in anything processed and packaged from a bag of chips, a can of soup, and of course, a bottle of soda. Food coloring is shown to be carcinogenic, add no nutritional value and can harm your brain and body.
You can check your soda's ingredient list to ensure it excludes red food dye or other additives. It is also important to note that the larger corporations producing these products don’t always have our best interest in hand.
As we come into the new year, it could be the perfect opportunity to kick that unhealthy soda habit for good. Carbonated water is a bubbly alternative, you can add lemon or other fun flavors like natural fruit juice to entice it. Having pure fresh fruit juice is a tasty alternative, and tea’s versatility makes it an excellent crutch to use instead of soda. Not to mention good old-fashioned water, so many of us are not drinking enough water and many illnesses are derived from being dehydrated. Our bodies are made up of water so try to reach for something other than soda or try to put some kind of limit or reward system around it, so you have less.
Soda is refreshing, bubbly and can seem like the perfect drink for oily snacks. However, did you know that many soda products contain red food dye, not to mention tons of sugar and other coloring additives. A write-up by Mashed discusses this red food dye created from beetles and how this can be found in anything processed and packaged from a bag of chips, a can of soup, and of course, a bottle of soda. Food coloring is shown to be carcinogenic, add no nutritional value and can harm your brain and body.
You can check your soda's ingredient list to ensure it excludes red food dye or other additives. It is also important to note that the larger corporations producing these products don’t always have our best interest in hand.
As we come into the new year, it could be the perfect opportunity to kick that unhealthy soda habit for good. Carbonated water is a bubbly alternative, you can add lemon or other fun flavors like natural fruit juice to entice it. Having pure fresh fruit juice is a tasty alternative, and tea’s versatility makes it an excellent crutch to use instead of soda. Not to mention good old-fashioned water, so many of us are not drinking enough water and many illnesses are derived from being dehydrated. Our bodies are made up of water so try to reach for something other than soda or try to put some kind of limit or reward system around it, so you have less.
Flossing
Flossing is a healthy habit that is especially great if one engages in orally damaging habits like smoking or drinking soda.
Unfortunately, dental floss is terrible for the environment because it's often made out of non-biodegradable, petroleum-based plastic. So, what can you do for your pearly whites? It is best to instead look towards specialty shops that use corn-based plastic, bamboo, charcoal, coconut oil, candelilla wax, and other pure ingredients in their products. This way, you can continue to take care of your teeth with biodegradable and eco-friendly floss.
Which of these habits surprised you? Check out other blog posts on Artistic Vegan to learn fun new recipes and more about a conscious lifestyle. Here, I also share our travels across the globe from Oaxaca to India where I trained at the yoga capital of the world. This journey can bring forth new spiritual revelations and deep healing, and it is my hope to share this with you.
Flossing is a healthy habit that is especially great if one engages in orally damaging habits like smoking or drinking soda.
Unfortunately, dental floss is terrible for the environment because it's often made out of non-biodegradable, petroleum-based plastic. So, what can you do for your pearly whites? It is best to instead look towards specialty shops that use corn-based plastic, bamboo, charcoal, coconut oil, candelilla wax, and other pure ingredients in their products. This way, you can continue to take care of your teeth with biodegradable and eco-friendly floss.
Which of these habits surprised you? Check out other blog posts on Artistic Vegan to learn fun new recipes and more about a conscious lifestyle. Here, I also share our travels across the globe from Oaxaca to India where I trained at the yoga capital of the world. This journey can bring forth new spiritual revelations and deep healing, and it is my hope to share this with you.
