How about your favorite Old Wives Tales related to health?

[NurseyTonyaLPN]

Another post (about stupid things patients say) made me think about this, I don't know if it's been posted before. But I have an elderly family member who says these things (and will not hear otherwise):

1) Having a baby at 7 months is better than having it at 8 months. My doctor told me something happens in the 8th month and if the process is disturbed it's bad for the baby. (I told her I've learned that every day in the womb is better for the baby, but she insists that's not the case).

2) Her breastmilk turned "to water" when her daughter was 3 months old and it was no longer good for her to breastfeed (I mentioned that babies go through a growth spurt at that time, but she insists, her Dr told her the breastmilk turned to water).

Makes you wonder about these docs back then huh? I know they probably did the best with their knowlege, but some people won't accept any new advice, if their doctor said it in 1940 it must be true huh? Any other favorite wives tales?

Tonya

[PMFB-RN, RN]

Sex with a virgin cures AIDS.

[greene]

My mother always told my brothers that if the "peed" on the road, they would get a sty.

When I was pregnant, my mother -in-law told me not to put my hands in cold water, it would make the baby cold.:chuckle

[Fast]

Yep, I've heard the "peeing on a side road, you'll get a sty" thing, too.

How about...

If you play with fire, you'll wet the bed.

Urine is the only cure to poison ivy, poison oak, etc.

Rubbing lemon juice on your face gets rid of freckles. (Jan tried this on The Brady Bunch.)

Baking soda takes out the "poison" of a bee sting.

These aren't necessarily health-related, but funny nonetheless...

While washing the dishes, if you splash dishwater on your stomach, you'll marry a drunk.

Shoes on a table means there will soon be a fight in the family.

[twistedpupchaser]

I have heard of a number of these "tales"" and often didn't know the consequences and others I have heard have different consequences or variations of methods.

I once had an Army officer tell me that carrying an acorn in your pocket will ensure that you will not get boils, he told me this because I was treating one of his men who had a boil on his shoulder so couldn't carry his back pack. He wanted me to "prescribe"this treatment to the young soldier.

I had a midwife tell us that breastfeeding is an effective birth control method for up to 12 months, six months later the Missus was pregnant.

Midwife asked if the Missus had heartburn during pregnancy due to our "hairy" child, the only hairy child AND the only heartburn throughout pregnancy.

Same midwife suggested that the Missus was too active during the pregnancy because the umbillical cord was twisted into knots and wrapped around the babies neck. Wrong, the Missus loved being pregnant it was an excuse to not be too active.

One "old husbands tale" I tell is that I advise my friends that if the labour goes for too long get a favourite food (the fathers) that needs to be eaten hot, cos gauranteed after waiting for hours for a feed, you will get interupted by the baby arriving.

Example:

Number 1 Son, 1 bite of pizza before he interupted the meal, after 26 hours of labour

Number 2 Son, 3 bites of a Yiros, 32 hours

Daughter, I got to sniff the coffee after 18 hours

[elizabells, BSN, RN]

While washing the dishes, if you splash dishwater on your stomach, you'll marry a drunk.

Oh, I am so screwed. I have to wear an apron when I'm washing dishes, or else do them starkers.

[ToxicShock]

My Mom got tons of these wives tales from her mother.

- Swallowing a watermelon seed will make a watermelon grow in your stomach.

- If it's an unusually warm day in the fall or winter, and you take off your coat because you're too hot you will get sick.

- Sitting too close to the TV will make you go blind, or make you get glasses (varies).

- Sitting too close to the TV when you have mumps will do the same as above.

- Drinking a glass of water upside down will get rid of hiccups (same with holding your breath).

- Deliberately going cross-eyed will make your eyes stay that way.

I'm sure there are some others I'm forgetting. My family is full of them, and obscure phrases like, "you can take a horse to the trough, but you can't make him drink".

[tvccrn, ASN, RN]

I'm sure there are some others I'm forgetting. My family is full of them, and obscure phrases like, "you can take a horse to the trough, but you can't make him drink".

This actually isn't an obscure phrase in the South. It, and others such as slippery as a greased pig, are quite common.

[ToxicShock]

This actually isn't an obscure phrase in the South. It, and others such as slippery as a greased pig, are quite common.

It's definitely obscure up here in the north Funny thing is, no one in my family is from the south!:chuckle

[Atheos]

My mom and nurses to this day tell me I need to wear a coat in winter because I'll get pneumonia.

Ridiculous. Not only have I never had pneumonia the only dangers of cold weather are frostbite, hypothermia and maybe a drop of the immuno response if the cold is stressing your body.

Pneumonia indeed...

[SueNYC]

A dr told my mother(mind you this was recently) when you had a sore throat to go to bed with a red scarf wrapped around your neck. Same dr. told me(also recently) in addition to atb for a strep throat, when I shower to take salt and rub it on my neck/throat area like an exfoliant.

[twistedpupchaser]

Dr once told me that to fix my cold (viral) I was to stand in a cold shower, sleep naked under a fan with the windows open. I said that wont help, I'll get pneumonia! He said Ï can cure that!

[PMFB-RN, RN]

Dr once told me that to fix my cold (viral) I was to stand in a cold shower, sleep naked under a fan with the windows open. I said that wont help, I'll get pneumonia! He said Ï can cure that!

*** More importantly he can bill for curing you of pneumonia. Hard to bill for advice on a viral cold he can't cure.