Many of us are guilty of having one or more bad habits. While we tend to know how they negatively impact our lives and the lives of those around us, most of us don’t realize how they harm the environment as well. This unwelcome impact on the planet raises the stakes when it comes to reasons to put an end to our bad habits.

Here are some bad habits that harm the environment and tips on how to stop them:

1. Wasting Food

Have you ever considered how much food is wasted every day? While supermarkets and restaurants are the biggest culprits when it comes to food waste, the volume of food thrown away by households is also staggering.

Committing yourself and your family members to eating everything you buy is easier said than done. The real trick is to improve your grocery shopping in order to reduce the amount of food that becomes destined to be discarded. Devise a monthly meal plan for your household that makes the most of the foods you buy. Keep track of consumption to calculate how much of certain items you should buy at one time. These and other ways to reduce food waste will contribute towards a reduced demand for food that better reflects how much is actually consumed.

2. Drug Addiction

Drug addiction hurts people in numerous physical, mental, social, and professional ways. It also contributes to environmental damage. Just think about the logistics of growing and transporting narcotics on a grand scale. It requires a lot of natural resources and energy. What’s more, most narcotics manufacturing operations are indifferent to ways in which their illegal operations harm the local environment.

The best way to reduce the negative impacts of the narcotics industry is for individuals to get clean. There are a number of ways to stop using and abusing drugs. One option is to go to rehab and follow up with therapy and group meetings. Those with exceptional cases of addiction should consider ibogaine treatment. Many addicts are learning what is ibogaine therapy and how it can work to treat their addiction. Ibogaine is a natural substance that can help people through withdrawal.

3. Driving Big and Powerful Vehicles

Sure, fuel prices are relatively low. That doesn’t make it okay to have a giant gas guzzler as your everyday vehicle of choice. Besides, fuel won’t be cheap forever. Gas-powered automobiles emit enormous amounts of toxic emissions into the atmosphere. The larger the vehicle and the more powerful the engine, the more emissions get released per mile.

The best solution is to buy an environmentally friendly hybrid or electric car. For those who can’t afford the price of these vehicles, pick a small car with good gas mileage. You should also start a carpool for work and school to reduce the number of cars on the road. If it’s convenient for you, consider taking public transportation whenever possible. If a place is within walking distance, put your legs to good use and get there the old fashioned way. If anything, these measures will save you a lot of money on fuel!

4. Supporting Environmentally Unfriendly Companies

As consumers, we have a responsibility to make the right choices for the environment when we buy things. Shop at stores that make an effort to be environmentally friendly with their product, packaging, and logistical practices. Don’t wait for the government to put regulations in place. We the public should make the right choice and support sustainable businesses as opposed to those which aren’t and charge us 50 cents less as a result. Paying a little more to help save the planet is a small price to pay in the grand scheme of things.

5. Smoking

Smoking puts toxins into the air. Those chemicals hurt the air that you and the people around you breathe. You may have made the decision to breathe in toxins, but other people didn’t. The more smoke we put into the air, the worse the air quality gets. Do your part by quitting smoking. Your body will thank you, and you’ll smell better.

Having bad habits is part of what makes us humans. Another thing that makes us human is the ability to examine our actions and strive to do better. Do better for the environment.