Myth 1: Body Hair Grows Back Thicker When You Shave It
Strong scientific evidence disproves these claims. As early as 1928, a clinical trial showed that shaving had no effect on hair growth. More recent studies confirm that shaving does not affect the thickness or rate of hair regrowth. In addition, shaving removes the dead portion of hair, not the living section lying below the skin's surface, so it is unlikely to affect the rate or type of growth. Shaved hair lacks the finer taper seen at the ends of unshaven hair, giving an impression of coarseness. Similarly, the new hair has not yet been lightened by the sun or other chemical exposures, resulting in an appearance that seems darker than existing hair. Basically, shaved hair feels coarse and that leads you to believe it's thicker. In reality you're just fooling yourself and your hair remains the same.
Myth 2: Calories Counting Is All That Matters for Weight Management and Health
We might like to believe that calories-in-equals-calories-out is a sufficient weight loss theory, but that means we have to accept our bodies are pretty simple. While consuming fewer calories can certainly have an impact, not all foods have the same impact once we stuff them down our throats. If you want to think about it in a very simple way, consider the difference between a candy bar and a cucumber (in equal caloric amounts). They taste different, they consist of different nutritional elements, and are not the same thing. It doesn't make sense that they'd be used by your body in the same way. The problem with the idea of calories being the only necessary metric is that we think of a calorie as a physical thing. Calories are just a means of measuring heat, and they weren't initially a term used in reference to food. A calorie, according to Wikipedia, "approximates the energy needed to increase the temperature of 1 gram of water by 1 degree Celsius." Basically, calories are a measurement and not something your body uses for fuel. What your body does use is what it finds in the foods and liquids it digests. If you put crap in your body, you're not going to be better off just because of a low-calorie rating.
Myth 3: You Need Eight Hours of Sleep Per Day
We're told we need to sleep eight hours each night, and while that's true for some it isn't true for all. The Hindustan Times points to a European study that showed people who possessed a gene known as ABCC9 could sleep for significantly fewer hours than the average person. Finding the same gene in fruit flies, the scientists found that by manipulating it they could also manipulate the amount of time the fruit flies spent in a restful state. When we asked you how much sleep you require, the results varied quite a bit. For some, eight hours was necessary. For others, it was too much. Your experiences match this study.
Myth 4: Reading in Dim Light Ruins Your Eyes
Reading in dim light is supposed to be bad for you, which is somewhat evidenced by a surviving bedside lamp and book light industry. If not, you've certainly been told to turn on a light when reading in the near-dark. While reading without sufficient lighting can cause eye strain, according to children's health researcher Rachel C. Vreeman and assistant professor of pediatrics Aaron E. Carrol it won't cause any serious and permanent damage:
The majority consensus in ophthalmology, as outlined in a collection of educational material for patients, is that reading in dim light does not damage your eyes. Although it can cause eye strain with multiple temporary negative effects, it is unlikely to cause a permanent change on the function or structure of the eyes. Even in patients with Sjögren's syndrome (an autoimmune disease that features inflammation in certain glands of the body), decreased functional visual acuity associated with strained reading improves when they stop reading. One review article on myopia concludes that increased use of one's eyes, such as reading in dim light or holding books too close to the face, could result in impaired ocular growth and refractive error. The primary evidence cited was epidemiological evidence of the increased prevalence of myopia and the high incidence of myopia in people with more academic experience. The author notes that this hypothesis is just beginning to "gain scientific credence." In the past reading conditions involved even less light, relying on candles or lanterns, so increased rates of myopia over the past several centuries does not necessarily support that dim reading conditions are to blame. In contrast to that review, hundreds of online expert opinions conclude that reading in low light does not hurt your eyes.
Myth 5: Urinating on a Jellyfish Sting will Sooth the Pain
The popular TV show Friends once had an episode where Monica was stung by a jellyfish and Joey remembered that urinating on the sting would soothe the pain. This was a situation for comedy—as the show was a sitcom, after all—but it still helped to propagate the myth that peeing on your friends is a good idea during the right situation. It's not. Mark Leyner and Dr. Billy Goldberg, authors of Why Do Men Have Nipples?, explain:
The following guideline can be applied to most jellyfish stings: The patient should remove any visible tentacles, using gloves if possible. The area of the sting should be rinsed with household vinegar. The acetic acid of the vinegar can block discharge of the remaining nematocysts (stinging cells) on the skin and should be applied liberally. If vinegar is not available, salt water can be used to wash off the nematocysts. In laboratory tests, urine, ammonia, and alcohol can cause active stinging cells to fire, which means applying them has the potential to make a minor sting worse, so urinating on a jellyfish sting is both gross and painful.
Myth 6: Your Slow Metabolism Makes You Fat
When you have a fast metabolism, your body is burning more calories. That means that fit and healthy people have faster metabolisms, right? Not necessarily. ABC News interviewed Dr. Jim Levine, an obesity researcher at the Mayo Clinic, who studied the human metabolism in both thin and heavy people. What he found was the opposite of the myth we believe. Referring to lean patient Kathy Strickland and heavier patient Dawn Campion, he said:
Dawn's numbers are actually higher because we find continuously is that people with weight problems who have obesity have a higher basal metabolism compared to people who are lean. Your basal metabolism is the calories you burn to keep your body going, so if your body is bigger of course your basal metabolism is greater. If your body is smaller your basal metabolism is less.
Myth 7: You'll Catch a Cold from Cold (and Wet) Weather Conditions
Did your mother ever tell you to put on a jacket or you'll catch a cold? Did you ever feel like you were coming down with something nasty after taking a dip in cold water only to be exposed to freezing air? While your comfort levels may have been reduced, you can't actually catch a cold from feeling cold. It's a virus—rhinovirus, to be exact—and you need to catch it through transmission. Mark Leyner and Dr. Billy Goldberg, authors of the book Why Do Men Have Nipples?, explain:
Cold or wet weather does not cause a cold, but nobody seems to want to accept this. The is common cold is caused by a virus. These viruses are everywhere and it is difficult to avoid them. When you are exposed to someone who has a cold, you are more likely to get ill yourself, so be careful about close contact and definitely wash your hands. Not getting enough sleep or eating poorly can also reduce your resistance to infection. Remember that antibiotics won't fight your everyday cold. Antibiotics work only against bacteria. To take care of a cold, rest, eat well, and a little chicken soup couldn't hurt.
Myth 8: More Heat Escapes Through Your Head
This myth probably originated with an old military study in which scientists put subjects in arctic survival suits (but no hats) and measured their heat loss in extremely cold temperatures. Because it was the only part of the subjects' bodies that was exposed to the cold, they lost the most heat through their heads. Experts say, however, that had this experiment been performed with subjects wearing only swimsuits, they would not have lost more than 10% of their body heat through their heads. A more recent study confirms that there is nothing special about the head and heat loss. Any uncovered part of the body loses heat and will reduce the core body temperature proportionally. So, if it is cold outside, you should protect your body. But whether you want to keep your head covered or not is up to you.
Myth 9: You Can Cure a Snake Bite by Sucking Out the Poison
Although it would be pretty bad ass if it were true, sucking on a snake bite to remove the poison is not only gross but a bad idea. According to Mark Leyner and Dr. Billy Goldberg, authors of Why Do Men Have Nipples?, doing so can even lead to an infection at the wound site. Instead, do what the American Red Cross suggests:
- Wash the bite with soap and water.
- Immobilize the bitten area and keep it lower than the heart.
- Get medical help.
In some cases it may also be recommended to loosely apply a tourniquet to slow the spread of the venom. So do those things. Don't try to suck it out.
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