How about your favorite Old Wives Tales related to health?

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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

The wet hair thing drives me insane! Plus my mom always tells me I'm going to get sick if I don't put on a jacket.

As a child, I was a fussy eater and my grandma always used to say "if you don't finish your meal, it will rain on your wedding day." Even at age 4 I didn't buy that!

My mom is full of superstitions that drive me nuts.

- If you break a mirror, someone is going to die.

- Dropping a fork means you will have an unexpected visitor.

- Sitting at the corner of the dinner table is bad luck because you won't get married for 7 years.

- If a bird enters your house or attempts to repeatedly, that is an imminent sign of death of a loved one (she swears this has happened to her several times...creepy!)

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Not really an Old Wives tale, but my husband SWEARS you can "sweat it out". Anything and everything.

Have a cold, sweat it out. Have an ear infection, who needs antibiotics, just sweat it out! Got cancer, better bundle up and sweat it out!

I love him, but....:confused::confused::confused::confused::confused:

Fever IS the bodies natural way to fight infection. Can remember hearing of cases of cancer being slowed if not cured after a person had an acute febrile process.....so perhaps he isn't so far off?

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Specializes in burn ICU, SICU, ER, Trauma Rapid Response.
- Sitting at the corner of the dinner table is bad luck because you won't get married for 7 years.

*** In that case my children are going to sit at the corners of the table until they are 25.

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I know a lot of Europeans that wear scarves around their necks when they have colds...I saw a German girl do it in India, and it was about 85 degrees out.

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Specializes in CNA: LTC & DD.

I'd think that you wouldn't want to cut a kid's hair before they were a year or two old because it's just FUSSY holding somebody that small down for a haircut!! lol!

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I was told tickling my son's feet when he was a baby will make him stutter. I have tickled the feet of all 3 of my boys and their speech is fine.

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Regarding the breast milk wives tail. What about having to drink warm liquids because if you drink cold liquids when the baby drinks them they get cold. I think this had something to do with religious beliefs, but beliefs that are hard to change.

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That bit about the finger sucking causing buck teeth is true

That's why braces work. Constant pressure in one direction shifts the teeth

Have bit of rum or brandy in your tea and call it a night to fight off a fever

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I think it's interesting how many of these are about pregnancy and babies. Maybe it's because this was a very mysterious aspect of health many years ago, and people were trying to find a reason for deaths that otherwise didn't make any sense.

I've also been told probably a billion times about wet hair/no coat/no hat and colds/flu/pneumonia/sinus infection, etc.

A couple posts back, somebody made a comment about alcohol for earaches (sorry, I don't know where it was). I worked at a camp last summer and we used a solution with alcohol and vinegar when the campers had an earache after swimming. My guess would be drying the water out, reducing the pain and preventing infection.

Maybe somebody can help me with this one: I've heard of one with some kind of ointment where they rub it into the inside of the elbow when they're sick, then scrape it out. I don't know what the ointment is and what it's supposed to do.

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Specializes in acute care.

A couple posts back, somebody made a comment about alcohol for earaches (sorry, I don't know where it was). I worked at a camp last summer and we used a solution with alcohol and vinegar when the campers had an earache after swimming. My guess would be drying the water out, reducing the pain and preventing infection.

That's pretty much right on. The alcohol dries out the water so the bacteria don't have a chance to grow in a nice warm moist environment and cause swimmer's ear. I was on swim team for years and used just straight rubbing alcohol to get any water out of my ears after swimming...if anyone got a case of swimmer's ear the coach (who happened, actually, to be a nurse) would lecture the whole team on prevention!

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Specializes in LTC, CPR instructor, First aid instructor..

When you're pregnant and carrying high and out front you are going to have a boy. I believed that at the time. So when I was pregnant with my second child, I had a boy's name. My baby girl was named after her paternal grandmother.

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Specializes in allergy and asthma, urgent care.

If you have heartburn while you're pregnant your baby will have a lot of hair!!

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