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Small actions repeated over and over can have big impacts over time.
A small and slow drip of water in a cave can form stalactites and stalagmites of immense size.
A mouthful of refined sugar or highly processed trans fat. A puff of tobacco. A sip of alcohol. A shot of caffeine. A jolt of adrenaline from inescapable abuse or violence. Our bodies can handle small insults. We survive these things.
How many is too many? How many might make us sick? How many will cause cancer or other disease? How many will kill us?
The numbers get big fast. For a 40 year old, a daily action will be over 15,000 repetitions. For a three times a day action will be 45,000 repetitions. Ten times a day is 150,000 times. 20 times a day is 300,000.
Big numbers add up to chronic stress on bodily systems. Maybe we can cope and heal from tiny wounds. But may scar tissue builds or damage accumulates. Maybe what we think of harmless or invisible is not? Maybe over time the body can’t take thousands and thousands of hits, sips, puffs or bites of poison.