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Ask HN: Something you’ve done your whole life that you realized is wrong?

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Re: Ask HN: Something you’ve done your whole life that you realized is wrong?

#301

Post by arcticfox »

yamtaddle wrote: post #79

Not using an electric toothbrush. First time I used one it felt like I'd had a proper dental cleaning. An extremely half-assed effort with that kind of brush beats a thorough one with a manual brush. I thought they were a gimmick, but no, they're amazing.

100%, and just a quick note that the quality of the brush makes a surprising difference. I was always skimping and buying $5-$10 electric toothbrushes when I tried in the past and was underwhelmed.

I finally tried a name brand brush from Costco when my wife insisted and it blew my mind. Actually excited to go to the dentist to see what they say this time when I’m not full of plaque for once

Re: Ask HN: Something you’ve done your whole life that you realized is wrong?

#302

Post by ralmidani »

xwowsersx wrote: post #201
ralmidani wrote: post #125

Putting off an annual checkup with a PCP (I’m 42, and the last PCP I had was a pediatrician). I had long suspected my cholesterol and triglycerides were high due to family history and my excessive love for cheese, and last week that suspicion was confirmed. I’m now more resolute than ever on lifestyle changes (exercise, less red meat, getting most of my calcium from 2% milk). On the bright side, I also got reassuranc…

> less red meat IIUC, they no longer believe that lipid cholesterol levels are directly correlated with intake of dietary cholesterol. See, for example: https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/what-should-you... > The biggest influence on blood cholesterol level is the mix of fats and carbohydrates in your diet—not the amount of cholesterol you eat from food. > Although it remains important to limit the amount o…

For the general population, meat and eggs are OK within reasonable amounts of consumption. But those with genetic susceptibility to high cholesterol need to be more careful about their diet than the general population. Same story with diabetes and hypertension.

Edit: FWIW, I’m not planning on abandoning red meat and eggs, but striving for no more than 4 eggs a week and 1, or max 2, servings of red meat. I would rather enjoy beef and lamb for the rest of my life and avoid ever having to eat only egg whites.

Re: Ask HN: Something you’ve done your whole life that you realized is wrong?

#304

Post by aatd86 »

ramraj07 wrote: post #200
yamtaddle wrote: post #79

Not using an electric toothbrush. First time I used one it felt like I'd had a proper dental cleaning. An extremely half-assed effort with that kind of brush beats a thorough one with a manual brush. I thought they were a gimmick, but no, they're amazing.

Disagreed; bought and used multiple electric toothbrushes and quickly stopped. I felt I always did a better job myself; turns out I instinctually brushed for 2 minutes minimum and ensured I didn’t just do the circular motion (as the dentist pointed out the second and last time I went to one in my life). Also, I never flossed, I have an anecdotal theory that if you never floss you never open the gaps in your teeth so…

I don't know wvy you are downvoted.

So have I. And several dentists have actually recommended manual brushing to me as well.

On the other hand, water flossing has been a boon against dental plaque and bad breath. I used to never floss.

Disgusting mistake... A lot of food particles get stuck in the teeth interstitial spaces, macerating in there overnight or even several days... Yuck. :x

Re: Ask HN: Something you’ve done your whole life that you realized is wrong?

#305

Post by mooreds »

yamtaddle wrote: post #79

Not using an electric toothbrush. First time I used one it felt like I'd had a proper dental cleaning. An extremely half-assed effort with that kind of brush beats a thorough one with a manual brush. I thought they were a gimmick, but no, they're amazing.

I wanted to be sold on an electric toothbrush, but I've only used one off and on.

How did you get into the habit?

Re: Ask HN: Something you’ve done your whole life that you realized is wrong?

#306

Post by titzer »

bradwood wrote: post #196
rjmill wrote: post #152

When my then-gf/now-wife and I first moved in together, I got really mad at her because she kept "hiding" my stuff when I left it out for more than a day. I couldn't find anything! At some point, I yelled, "It's like you don't even want to see any of my things when I'm not using them!" Then I stopped for a second. For the first time in my life, it made sense. The whole point of putting things away is to hide them! No…

I still have this now. She's always hiding my shit from me. Deliberately to piss me off. /s

Every item should have an agreed-upon place where it goes. Then if it is not out/can't find it, it's in its place. So if you both agree on that, then putting things away is NBD, and no one is hiding anything.

Re: Ask HN: Something you’ve done your whole life that you realized is wrong?

#307

Post by micheljansen »

I think I was in my late twenties when I found out I had been tying my shoes wrong all my life. There is a correct and an incorrect way to do it. This affects not just how the knot looks (straight vs crooked), but also how easily it becomes untied: https://www.inc.com/minda-zetlin/theres-a-better-way-to-tie-...

Re: Ask HN: Something you’ve done your whole life that you realized is wrong?

#309

Post by scythe »

tashoecraft wrote: post #137
mtlynch wrote: post #33

Staying warm. In the winter, I used to stay warm by turning up the thermostat. Then I discovered (via HN) the Low-Tech Magazine article, "Insulation: first the body, then the home." [0] The article argued that it's much more efficient to focus on heating yourself rather than your whole living space. I invested in high-quality wool clothes that I wear in layers and warm slippers. Now, I keep my home about 5 degrees F…

Electrically heated clothing is now becoming readily available, and I think it could have a big impact on home heating if people would come around to it. I'm able to keep my office much colder, but wear a heated vest. Why heat the whole room when I'm the only thing that wants to be warm in it? If the clothing was all integrated, in theory I could be kept at my ideal temperature at a nominal electricity cost.

Electrically heated clothing is a terrible idea. Comfortable for three years, then one day it just kills you. There's a reason that every power cable says things like "do not crush", but who's going to rigorously avoid putting their body weight on their shirt?

Re: Ask HN: Something you’ve done your whole life that you realized is wrong?

#310

Post by FredPret »

hbn wrote: post #58
xyzelement wrote: post #19

I used to assume the religious people were missing something and missing out on the latest and greatest. Now I am seeing that often it's us the non-religious that have lost something of value and are trying to replace it with things that don't work as well.

I was raised in a Christian community and went to a private Christian school all the way until graduation, though really stopped believing all the stuff by 11th grade or so. And it's wild the parallels I see between the modern political climate and religion. It really seems that in the process of masses leaving the church, they've gone on to adopt the exact same behaviors but worshipping other things - government, ad…

I think the cat's out of the bag - there's no sky friend looking out for us. There's no going back now for most people.

This has been replaced by ersatz religions, but I think we should start explicitly worshipping the concept of civilization and progress. From a certain point of view, civilization is a cybernetic organism that encompasses all of us and gives us all sorts of neat things.

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