5 Daily Rituals That Are Harmful To Women In The Long Run

Written by Emaan Shah  • 

Being a woman isn’t easy.

And if you happen to disagree with me, then you’re most probably a man.

Hey, just stating facts here!

Us women have extensive daily rituals. On top of all those necessary grooming habits that every civilized human being must follow like bathing and brushing their teeth, we have a million more complicated procedures to keep up with.

We must condition post-shampooing because- hello! – This length of hair can’t be tackled with any hairbrush created by man without help. And simply washing your face is never enough.

Oh no.

 It must be followed by exfoliation (no blackheads, please), a toner (cause we MUST tighten skin pores), a sunscreen or a night cream (depending on the time of the day), face serum (if you’re rich) and zit cream (because dang it, God hates us so we still break out!).

Don’t even get me started on waxing and bras and all the love menstruation evokes in us (read: sarcasm). That’s a rant for another time. Fact is, women don’t have it easy but we’ve tried to cope. Through the years we’ve managed to build habits that produce the quickest and most effective results in allowing us to appear, well, like a human female. However, some of these rituals and habits may be causing more harm than good. It’s time to wake up.

Read on to discover 8 daily rituals that may be wrecking havoc overtime:

1. Wearing The Same Menstrual Pad Through the Day

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Sometimes you’re hit with a heavy flow that demands you change pads every 2-3 hours and then there are times where there’s such light spotting you’re almost convinced your period’s bid you adieu.

Yeah, dream on. Like a serial killer from a horror movie, you think you’ve shot him dead but he- Just. Keeps. Returning.

This is when women continue to wear their lightly spotted pad because, there ain’t no harm in being frugal, right?

Wrong.

According to experts, one must change their sanitary towels every 5 hours. This ensures the prevention of any potential infections or growth of microorganisms in the lush, warm environment of your used pad.

CAUTION: If you happen to be using tampons, you must doubly ensure that you change them regularly as prolonged wear could put you at risk of Toxic Shock Syndrome (TSS) that can be fatal (1).

2. Washing The Vagina With Soap

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Your lady bits need cleaning too; I get it. However, applying soap on your vaginal area isn’t the answer. Experts recommend simply cleansing with water or else douching. Our vaginas have a natural, delicate pH that the harsh chemicals from soap can upset causing it to become itchy and unnecessarily dry.

Also perversely, by cleansing with soap you actually destroy the population of good bacteria (aka evolutionary protection) residing in your vagina, thereby increasing your risk of contracting bacterial vaginosis (2, 3).

3. Sleeping With A Bra On

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Contrary to what our mothers may bemoan, not wearing a bra doesn’t lead to your breasts sagging. In fact quite the opposite is true! Don’t believe me, well, Science will back me up.

According to a study conducted by the University of Besançon, France, which followed women for 15 years, it was found that bras were a false necessity. “Medically, physiologically, anatomically – breasts gain no benefit from being denied gravity. On the contrary, they get saggier with a bra.” Says Prof. Rouillon, one of the lead researchers (4).

The study concluded that the “support” of a bra in the women, ages 18 to 35, who volunteered for the study, actually led to a weakening of their chest muscles, making their breasts droop over time. On the other hand, volunteers who forwent a bra showed a 7mm lesser sagging in comparison!

4. Spraying Deodorant Directly On Our Skin

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Research indicates that this prevalent practice could potentially lead to breast cancer (5, 6). Your deodorant is made up of several toxic chemicals like aluminum, parabens, phthalates, and triclosan, which once sprayed directly upon your skin can potentially enter your bloodstream. From there, really the world is their oyster. Nobody can fault you for wanting to smell clean and fragrant. However, it’s best to play it safe and spritz over your clothes in the future.

5. Braving The Sun Without Any Protection

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In the course of our hectic schedules sometimes we skip the sunscreen and decide to brave the sun without any defense. But the horror stories of sun damage aren’t urban legends created by greedy skincare companies. Oh no, my friend, they’re very real and very scary. Not only does no sun protection put you at risk of skin cancer, but it also accelerates the process of premature aging (7, 8, 9, 10, 11).

There you have it, 5 daily rituals that we’re guilty of practicing as women, which we must change. Yes, being a woman is hard, but we’re made of tougher stuff. Stay strong, sister!

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