Health Myths Unearthed

Health Myths Unearthed

Post
Subscribe

Posted 2013-06-20 by Lorraine Afollow
Here are a few things your parents probably told you as a child, some you may have thought were true but none of which have evidence to support it.



* The flu vaccine can give you the flu
The flu vaccine contains a tiny amount of dead virus. It's not possible for dead virus to cause infection, it is more likely people get their flu shot in winter/autumn when coughs and colds are common.

*Sugar makes kids hyperactive
Despite what many parents will insist on this being true, there is no proven study to suggest there is a link between hyperactivity and sugar even in children with ADHD.

*Sitting too close to the TV will ruin your eyes
This myth came about in the 60's and did hold a certain degree of truth as TV emitted a form of x-ray, however, although today's TVs and computer screens will not ruin your eyes but can cause eye strain.

* Don't swim for an hour after eating
It was thought that swimming after eating could cause you to drown, however studies show that it's fine to swim after eating and causes no ill effects.

* Chocolate causes acne/pimples
Pimples and acne are caused by bacteria and are not associated with what you eat, therefore eating chocolate will not give you pimples or acne.



* You need to drink at least eight glasses of water a day
There is no evidence that your body needs at least 8 glasses of water a day. Surprisingly, food contains most of the water your body needs. This is not taking into account temperature and exercise.

* Cold weather increases the chance of catching a cold
Despite more people having coughs and colds during winter, cold weather does not increase your chance of catching a cold. It's thought to be more common to catch colds in winter as more people are inside and are in closer contact with each other.



* Vitamin C prevents colds
Vitamin C does not prevent colds, however it can show very minor changes in the severity and duration of a cold.

* Feed a cold and starve a flu
The most important thing when you have a cold or flu is your fluid intake, which needs to be enough to keep you well hydrated. Food however does not make a difference in the duration or severity.

* You loose 75% of your body's heat through your head
It was thought that humans lost the majority of heat through their head. This may be the case for babies because their head has a bigger percentage of body mass compared to an adult's head, however, heat escapes from any exposed area of the body, usually 10% of this being from the head.

* We can catch up on sleep on the weekend
As much as we would all like this one to be true, it's been found you can never catch up on lost sleep.

Birth control pills don't work as well with antibiotics
Studies have shown that antibiotics don't affect the effectiveness of birth control pills, with the only exception being Rifapin, an antibiotic that is not commonly prescribed.

Have you heard of any other interesting health myths?

#health_beauty
#health_fitness
#lists
#self_help
%wneverywhere
89494 - 2023-06-11 08:08:52

Tags

Music
Free
Arts_culture
Film_tv_reviews
Outdoor
Random
Nightlife
Family_friendly
Festivals
Community
Food_drink
Fundraisers
Educational
Holiday
Markets
Copyright 2024 OatLabs ABN 18113479226