List of 10 Old Wives’ Tales
Old wives’ tales are traditional beliefs that are not based on fact. They are a form of superstition or cultural folklore, often incorporating handed-down beliefs about health and medicine. Such stories and pieces of advice were likely exchanged in all periods of human history. The phrase old wives’ tale (wives in this case being an archaic word for women) dates back to at least 1595, when it was used in the title of a play by George Peele. A similar term, old wives’ fable, was in use around 1611, when the term appears in the King James Bible. The term had a negative connotation even then, as the Apostle Paul’s exhortation to his disciple Timothy is translated as “But refuse profane and old wives’ fables, and exercise thyself rather unto godliness” (1 Timothy 4:7). Some scholars have suggested that the negative opinion of these beliefs in the 16th and 17th centuries was due to the influence of the Scientific Revolution. During this time period, storytelling, custom, and myth were considered hindrances to hard sciences and proven intellectual discovery. Combine that with the inherent sexism of the age, and you have the makings of a phrase that both discounts the fable itself, and ascribes the blame to worried older women.
The exchange of unverified folk wisdom has survived despite the past centuries of skeptical inquiry. Here are 10 old wives’ tales and what science says about them.
1. Swallowed chewing gum will remain in your digestive tract for seven years.
While it’s true that your body is incapable of digesting your average chewing gum, it will not remain in your digestive system longer than anything else you may consume. According to experts at the Mayo Clinic, swallowed gum will pass through your digestive tract relatively intact and exit your system along with other waste.
2. Sitting too close to a television will harm your eyesight.
This belief may have had some truth to it in the early days of television when some TV sets emitted high levels of radiation, which can damage various tissues. Nevertheless, sitting close to a modern television will not damage your eyes. Adults will likely experience temporary eyestrain from close-up viewing, but children often find it easier to focus on things right in front of them, a habit that they grow out of as they get older. However, a preference for sitting right next to the television may be a sign that a child is nearsighted and should be examined by an eye doctor.
3. You can predict the sex of your baby based on your baby bump.
This is far from the only old wives’ tale about pregnancy. You can find more in this list of 9 bizarre myths about pregnancy.
If you lived before the rise of ultrasound scans and prenatal testing, you had to wait until you gave birth to find out if your new family member was a boy or a girl. But that didn’t stop people from trying to find ways to figure it out beforehand. Some people say that the shape of your abdomen during pregnancy is an indicator of your baby’s sex, while others say it’s whether you are carrying high or low. Sadly, neither of these techniques will actually tell you anything about your baby.
4. Cracking your knuckles too much can lead to arthritis.
According to Robert Klapper, an orthopedic surgeon from Cedars-Sinai, cracking your knuckles does not lead to arthritis. In a 2018 interview with the Cedars-Sinai blog he stated,“The noise of cracking or popping in our joints is actually nitrogen bubbles bursting in our synovial fluid…[it] does no harm at all to our joints.”
5. Eating watermelon while drinking alcohol is dangerous.
What exactly is meant to happen varies from teller to teller, but this old wives’ tale suggests that consuming watermelon while, or immediately after, drinking alcohol can cause anything from an upset stomach to death. Although there is nothing to prevent such misfortunes from befalling you while partaking in this combination, there is no dangerous chemical reaction between watermelon and alcohol. Some people even make wine from watermelon!
6. Feed a cold, starve a fever.
As popular as this piece of colloquial medical advice may be in some places, it is also false. Eating while you have a fever will not harm you, and it may even help you feel better. It is also important to drink plenty of fluids whether you have a cold or a fever, as these afflictions may cause dehydration.
7. Eating carrots improves your eyesight in the dark.
While the exact origin of this old wives’ tale is unknown, it was popularized by the Royal Air Force during World War II. After the Allied powers made secret advancements in radar technology, British pilots needed an explanation as to how they were able to shoot down German aircraft in low visibility. Claiming that their military successes were all thanks to carrots helped hide their technological innovation while encouraging healthy eating at home. Unfortunately, carrots will only noticeably improve your vision if you are deficient in vitamin A.
8. Plucking out gray hair will encourage more gray hairs to grow.
According to University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) physician Shaskank Kraleti this idea has no grounding in science. As she said to a UAMS Health blogger, “Plucking a gray hair will only get you a new gray hair in its place because there is only one hair that is able to grow per follicle. Your surrounding hairs will not turn white until their own follicles’ pigment cells die.”
9. Shaving a patch of hair will cause it to grow back twice as thick.
This is another hair related belief that is just as untrue as the last. Shaving hair does not affect its thickness, color, or rate of growth. While freshly shaved hair may seem darker or thicker, that is just because the tapered end has been removed, leaving only the blunt end of the cut hair.
10. Drafts will make you sick.
While a drafty room may make you feel chilly, it cannot give you a cold. The common cold is caused by viruses that infect the upper respiratory tract. These viruses can be airborne, but you are much more likely to catch them from being in close contact with a sick person—as you may do when keeping indoors due to cold weather—than from an open window.