Old Wives' Tales: Are These Health Myths Fact or Fiction?
Does chicken soup and apples really have curing powers? Get the facts.
Does chicken soup and apples really have curing powers? Get the facts.
Wellness-related chestnuts like "chicken soup cures the common cold" have been around for centuries -- literally. (The Jewish philosopher Maimonides touted soup's benefits back in the 1300s.) But how true are they? With so much focus on battling the H1N1 virus this year, we evaluated age-old tips on fighting illnesses to see if science backs them up. (The jury's still out on chicken soup.)
Credit: Jared Andrew Schorr
An Apple a Day Keeps the Doctor Away
This maxim, which got its start in the English countryside, is a wise one, but you'll need to do more than just eat Granny Smiths. A rainbow of produce on your plate is the best bet, says Neil Schachter, M.D., author of The Good Doctor's Guide to Colds & Flu. Bright-colored fruits and vegetables give us the vitamins and antioxidants that boost the immune system.
Credit: Jared Andrew Schorr
Starve a Fever, Feed a Cold
Mark Twain made this phrase famous in The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County. But Jeannie Gazzaniga-Moloo, R.D., a spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association, says, "Loss of appetite can be the body's natural mechanism to fight a flu's pathogens. But if you're hungry, then eat." And don't skimp on liquids. "That's crucial."
Credit: Jared Andrew Schorr
Go Out With Wet Hair and You'll Catch a Cold
Nonsense, says Norman H. Edelman, M.D., chief medical officer of the American Lung Association. "You don't catch a cold by getting wet. You catch it by being exposed to a virus." There's some medical evidence that a chill can lower your body's resistance to infection, so exercising in cold weather wearing shorts and a T-shirt may make you more susceptible if you then get near someone with a cold or flu.
Credit: Jared Andrew Schorr
Colds and Flus are Most Contagious Before Symptoms Appear
Though it's true you're contagious 24 to 48 hours before symptoms show up, colds and flus are most catchable at their peak, when maximum coughing and sneezing send infected droplets into the air. "Even after you feel better, you're shedding the virus for at least one week," says Schachter.
Credit: Jared Andrew Schorr
Don't Kiss Anyone If You Have a Cold
Because saliva carries less cold virus than nasal drip and phlegm, you're more likely to infect someone with a cough than a smooch. Best bet: Don't shake hands with people who are coughing and sneezing, as they are likely to touch their face and noses. That makes for a pretty dangerous grip.
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In addition to what I've
In addition to what Purplehope has written above, I believe that education given by teachers at school is very important too. Even from the first classes children should attend health classes where they should be taught by doctors how to act daily in order to keep themselves healthy.
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These things are being
These things are being thought in drug rehab treatment centers too because people there tend to not take care of themselves because of their problems. Actually, I believe that parents should be the first ones to teach their children about the risks they are taking when going out with their hair wet, kiss someone when they've already caught a cold and so on. These are basic advices.