Would any sensible person ever light a pile of paper on fire and revel in inhaling the smoke? Or take eight or nine teaspoons of sugar, mix it in a can of water and drink it to quench thirst? Probably not. 

However, even in their most sober state of mind, many people continue to consume products like cigarettes, soda and unhealthy foods in large quantities, even though they are clearly harmful to health.

Steps have been outlined on how to quit smoking, how to stop overeating and how to avoid sugary drinks that are deleterious for our health. However, recent statistics show that too many people remain unwilling to quit their bad habits. 

According to a 2014 study from the Center for Disease Control, 17 out of every 100 American adults smoke cigarettes. That’s 40 million adults in the U.S. who are still willing to shell out money for a dose of an addictive substance that does nothing but hurt their personal growth and health. 

Companies like Coca-Cola and Pepsi are still making billions of dollars from calorie-rich soft drinks each year. Consequently, more than one-third of the adults in the U.S. are obese. Clearly, most Americans will consume anything that tastes or feels good and has an appealing advertisement strategy. 

Laws and regulations do not seem to change peoples’ minds about quitting negative behaviors. The ability to abandon a harmful behavior comes from the strength of personality within. When an action becomes a habit, an individual will immediately reach for that cigarette or can of Coke because they have mentally associated the action with leisure and relaxation. 

Let’s face it, smoking and unhealthy food can never truly be banned because they have become a big part of our world economy and society. These vices will only disappear if people all over the world start making personally healthier life choices. 

An easy solution to these problems could be substituting harmful habits with slightly better ones. Lately, there has been a rise of an alternative capitalist culture of companies that provide innovative, inexpensive and healthy substitutes to unhealthy products. 

For instance, the invention of a non-nicotine, non-tobacco stimulant that can be smoked— but is as safe as drinking coffee or tea— may benefit society greatly. E-cigarettes are close, but they are too recent an invention to know whether or not they have long-term consequences.

As for consuming healthier food and drinks, if more people started exercising and felt capable of reaching their body’s full potential, then they would automatically develop healthier eating habits. In fact, recent news indicates that this health revolution is possible and potentially already on the horizon—the sale of carbonated drinks fell by 1.5 percent in 2015. 

We ultimately can’t take away a person’s freedom by forcing them to stop their bad habits. However, we could make abandoning bad habits more societally important and inspire the habitually unhealthy to choose a more satisfying kind of freedom.