Community Chat

[Topaz Gem]

My local news had a segment on this and I thought it was interesting. Some old wives tales are merely folklore, but there are actually a few that are backed by medical science:

An apple a day keeps the doctor away

Research at the University of Ulster found that apple phenols protect against colon cancer. Researchers at Cornell University also found that up to six apples a day can prevent breast cancer in primates, and believe this may also apply to humans.

Hot tubs may decrease chances of pregnancy

A three-year study at the University of San Francisco found men who switched to showers instead of their normal hour-long hot baths had sperm counts that rose nearly 500 percent.

Long labor, must be a boy

Researchers at Dublin's National Maternity Hospital studied 8,000 births and found that mothers of boys were significantly more likely to have longer labor and more complications.

Don't swim right after eating

The Winnipeg Regional Health Authority says after a meal, blood is diverted to the digestive tract to help assist with the digestive process. Exercise diverts blood to muscles, so it is possible that vigorous exercise after a meal could lead to cramps.

Wear a hat to hold on to your body heat

U.S. military research in the Arctic in the 1950s found up to 80 percent of body heat was loss through the uncovered heads of volunteers. Subsequent research conducted in Army labs qualified the claim, finding that a body at rest loses 7 to 10 percent of heat through the head, and during exercise, up to 50 percent, according to TLC: How Things Work.

Eat your carrots

Researchers at the Erasmus Medical Centre in Rotterdam found that eating high levels of beta carotene - the compound that gives carrots their coloring - as well as vitamins C, E and zinc, lowers the chance of age-related macular degeneration by up to 35 percent. Other sources of beta carotene include pumpkins, sweet potatoes, pink grapefruit and spinach.

Drink cranberry juice for a bladder infection

A study done at Harvard Medical School showed that properties in cranberries destroy bacteria clinging to the wall of the bladder. Blackberry juice has a similar effect.

Chicken soup fights a cold

Allabouthhealth.org/UK says that in the 1980s, researchers from the University of Nebraska Medical Center found chicken soup has anti-inflammatory properties that help soothe a cold. Other researchers have found that the amino acid, cysteine, is a byproduct of chicken soup, seems to reduce the inflammatory response that comes from colds and other upper-respiratory infections.

If you know of any old wives' tales (that work) that have been handed down in your family over the generations, please post them on this thread. I think our ancestors were on to something.