Myth #1: Do It While You're Young

When you're young, your body can recover from anything you subject it to, like smoking, drinking, eating lots of fatty food, and staying up until the wee hours of the morning, right? Wrong. While you may not notice it right away, your body accumulates toxins and minor injuries that never completely heal.

For example, your brain cells die at an accelerated rate when you lose sleep, and they never regenerate, ever. Your liver cells work harder and try to compensate at first when you drink excessive amounts of alcohol, but eventually they will give out and die, and all that will be left is nonfunctioning scar tissue.

So even though you don't feel anything when you're in your teens or even up to your early thirties, abusing your body will eventually take its toll. I've seen enough middle-aged patients with poor memory, liver cirrhosis, and chronic obstructive lung disease to know what I'm talking about.

Take care of your body like you would your favorite car: with good maintenance, regular check-ups, and moderate use. Stay tuned.