Medical Myths

1) How is your health? What things do you do to stay healthy?

2) What unhealthy habits do people have nowadays?

3) How do you cure a cold or a hangover?

Old Wives’ Tales

Old wives’ tales are pieces of advice, usually about nutrition or parenting that are passed down from
an older mother to a younger one. Such tales are often based on superstition instead of fact. What
old wives tales are shared in your country? Make a list with a partner.

The table below contains some commonly held health ideas. First, match the beginning of each
sentence to its end. Then decide which you believe and which you do not.

1. People should drink a. it to grow back faster, darker, or coarser.

2. Reading in dim light harms b. 10% of our brains.
3. Eating turkey makes c. 7 years to pass through your system
4. Men think of sex d. hiccups.
5. Cold, wet weather causes e. your hair gray.
6. Chocolate causes f. at least eight glasses of water a day.
7. Standing on your head cures g. people drowsy.
8. Worry and stress can turn h. your eyesight.
9. We use only i. reduces your performance
10. Hair and fingernails continue j. to grow after death.
11. Shaving hair causes k. become hyperactive
12. Children who eat a lot of sugar l. colds and flu.
13. Chewing gum takes m. every seven seconds.
14. Having sex before playing sports n. acne.

Some Answers

Re: Water. Eight glasses or two to three litres of water a day are not needed to maintain health. The
amount of water needed varies by person (weight), activity level, clothing, and environment (heat and
humidity). Moreover, consuming things that contain water, such as juice, tea, milk, fruits, and
vegetables, also keeps a person hydrated, and can supply more than half of the needed water.

Re: Sugar & children. Studies have shown no behavioral differences between children given sugar-
full or sugar-free diets, even in studies specifically looking at children with attention-
deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) or those considered sensitive to sugar.

Re: Chewing gum. Chewing gum is mostly indigestible. But it passes through the digestive system at
the same rate as other matter.
Re: 10% brain usage. While it is true that a small minority of neurons in the brain is actively firing at
any one time, inactive neurons are important too. This misconception has been around since the
start of the 20th century and was attributed to William James, who apparently used the expression
metaphorically.

Re: Every 7 seconds. In reality, this has not been measured, and as far as researchers can tell, this
statistic greatly exaggerates the frequency of sexual thoughts.

Re: Sex before sports. There is no physiological basis for this belief. Additionally, it has been proven
that sex during the 24 hours prior to sports activity can elevate the levels of testosterone in males,
which potentially could enhance performance.

Re: Shaving hair. Shaving does not cause hair to grow back thicker or coarser or darker. This belief
is due to hair which has never been cut having a tapered end, whereas after cutting there is no taper;
the cut hair appears to be thicker, and feels coarser due to the sharper, unworn edges. The shorter
hairs being "harder" (less flexible) than longer hairs also contribute to this effect.

Re: Hair and nails after death. Hair and fingernails do not grow after a person dies. Rather, the skin
dries and shrinks from the bases of hairs and nails, giving the appearance of growth.

Match the words with their meaning

1. superstition a. a belief/idea that is not based on correct information

2. dim b. made of large pieces; not fine
3. coarse c. sleepy
4. the hiccups d. stretch the truth; make sth seem bigger/better/worse than it
5. drowsy really is
6. misconception e. become smaller; move away or back from sth
7. metaphor f. the belief that events happen for supernatural reasons
8. exaggerate (verb) g. gradually become narrower
9. taper (verb) h. a thing regarded as representative or symbolic of something
10. shrink (verb) else
i. sounds made in the throat caused by movement of the
diaphragm
j. not bright

Master the language: Connect the below ideas to make a sentence.

government / crush / uprising e.g. The government plans to crush the uprising.
superstition / hiccups
dim / drowsy
coarse / taper
misconception / health
metaphor / life
exaggerate / effect
shrink / skin

Discussion Questions

1) What’s your opinion of Eastern medicine?

2) Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD): Is this a real condition?

3) What non-medical myths do you know (e.g. about physics, or history)?