Top bad habits to kick

We have developed many bad habits during lockdown and now we want to kick them.

A Herbalife Nutrition survey of 5,000 consumers aged 18 and above, conducted in August, showed that eight out of 10 consumers in the Asia-Pacific region wanted to kick unhealthy lifestyle habits they developed during the pandemic.

The top three on the list were: an unbalanced diet (53 percent), not exercising regularly (53 percent) and not getting adequate sleep (52 percent).

The survey also revealed that poorer stamina or fitness levels, excess weight gain and a weaker immune system were the most common negative impacts resulting from the unhealthy lifestyle habits adopted in the last two years.

Of those who reported putting on weight, over half (51 percent) put on three to five kilograms, while 21 percent added six to 10 kilograms. This weight gain was mostly attributed to:

eating too much unhealthy food

(53 percent)

binge-eating due to stress (53 percent)

not getting enough sleep (29 percent)

consuming alcohol on a more frequent basis (13 percent)

"These unhealthy habits can in turn pose serious health risks. But habits can be changed - with a little determination, motivation and support from like-minded people, it is possible to swap out unhealthy habits for healthier ones," said Stephen Conchie, Herbalife's regional president for Asia Pacific and China.

The survey also revealed that Generation Z and millennials were more likely to pick up unhealthy dietary or nutrition habits compared to older generations such as Generation X and boomers (79 versus 59 percent).

ivy.ong@singtaonewscorp.com