3 habits that can be just as bad for your health as smoking

Health experts agree that smoking is not a healthy habit, but some experts say there are other habits that can be just as bad for your health, according to a report from WomensHealthMag.com.

One bad habit is sitting for prolonged periods.

Inactivity is linked to nearly 160,000 cases of cancer each year, according to Alberta Health Services-Cancer Care in Canada.

Experts recommend making a new habit of taking breaks on-the-move at work.

Another unhealthy habit is eating too much meat and cheese, which have become staples of the American diet.

Middle aged people are four times more likely to die from cancer if they're on high-animal protein diets, according to a study from the University of Southern California published in the journal Cell Metabolism.

Experts said that you should replace some of the meat and cheese in your diet with vegetarian protein sources like beans.

Not sleeping enough is another habit that can hurt your health.

It leads to a host of health problems and raises your mortality rate to the same level seen in smokers, experts say.

They recommend trying to get at least six to seven hours of sleep a night.