40+ Year Olds Share 10 Habits That 20-Year-Olds Think Are Harmless, But Will Destroy Them in 20 Years

• While aging is a gift, not all of it is sunshine and rainbows. We like to think of our 20s as a carefree time when we can make whatever bad decisions we want without consequences, but that's just not how our bodies and minds work. 40+ year olds recently took to r/AskReddit to share the bad habits of their 20s that made their 40s so much more difficult. Whatever age you're at, you can take this advice and apply it to your life, even if you think it's too late.

• 01

  "Marrying someone you can’t really talk to"

  
  via Vitaly Gariev

  —2close4missles

  
   

• 02

  "Ignoring dental care. People in their 20s can skip cleanings and think, "My teeth are fine." Decades later, gum disease, tooth loss, and expensive dental work can become a major issue."

  
  via Getty Images (Unsplash+)

  —lonelygayPhD

• 03

  "Not wearing earplugs at concerts. I was a music photographer in my 20s, and now there's always a constant ringing in my ears and I have a hard time hearing people a lot of the time."

  
  via Guilherme Stecanella

  —smurfopolis

• 04

  "Not having a good daily routine, including good sleep. Not getting enough exercise and sunlight. Giving up on things that are hard too soon."

  
  via Natalia Blauth (Unsplash+)

  —Spread-Sanity

• 05

  "Sitting all day."

  
  via Laura Chouette

  —jakemoffsky

• 06

  "Not reading. Seriously, get into a habit of reading early. You'll thank yourself later."

  
  via Michael T (Unsplash+)

  —RoninIV

• 07

  "Not lifting weights. Lack of resistance training of some kind makes you much more likely to injure yourself as you age. It even affects bone density."

  
  via Getty Images (Unsplash+)

  —independentfinally

• 08

  "Not learning how to make, keep and tolerate friends is damaging long term. People that don’t learn how to identify the difference between a party friend and a real friend end up with lots of people who never show up when it counts."

  
  via Getty Images (Unsplash+)

  —Alive_Comfortable123

• 09

  "Allowing money to leak out of your bank account for convenience purchases. Something as simple as eliminating any gas station purchase other than actual fuel has a meaningful financial benefit over the course of a year."

  
  via Sam Burke (Unsplash+)

  —heykatja

• 10

  "Not paying yourself first (saving) or saving for retirement."

  
  via micheile henderson

  –Repulsive-Box5243

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