unhealthful

adjective un·health·ful \ ˌən-ˈhelth-fəl also -ˈheltth- \

Updated on: 17 Mar 2018

Definition of unhealthful

: harmful to health of body or mind : unhealthy 1

unhealthful levels of water pollution

an unhealthful diet

an unhealthful tendency to worry

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Recent Examples of unhealthful from the Web

Some advocates for healthful diets have argued that government should not only encourage people to buy healthier food but also discourage unhealthful habits.

— courtney perkes, Washington Post, "When Food Stamps Pass As Tickets To Better Health," 17 Jan. 2018
Officials also said the San Gabriel Valley and San Gabriel Mountains could see unhealthful air.

— ruben vives, latimes.com, "Wildlife brings smoke, ash, unhealthful air quality to parts of Southern California," 2 Sep. 2017
Risks of contaminants have to be balanced against the overall benefits of traditional foods — and the risks of replacing them with unhealthful and more processed foods, experts say.

— yereth rosen, Alaska Dispatch News, "Polar bears’ switch to land foods showing up in lowered mercury levels," 20 June 2017
Adding to the discomfort, the South Coast Air Quality Management District is predicting unhealthful air on Monday across the Inland Empire and in the San Fernando and San Gabriel valleys.

— david zahniser, latimes.com, "When it comes to Southern California's heat wave, the worst is yet to come," 18 June 2017
The greater Los Angeles area has the worst ozone problem in the nation, but the number of unhealthful days is on a declining trend, with 2015 the best year so far.

— david danelski, Orange County Register, "Southern California’s smog clean-up future is far from clear," 18 Apr. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'unhealthful.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of unhealthful

1580

in the meaning defined above

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unhealthful Synonyms

Medical Dictionary

unhealthful

adjective un·health·ful \ -ˈhelth-fəl \

medical Definition of unhealthful

: detrimental to good health

unhealthful working conditions

—

unhealthfulness

noun

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