Vol.III, No.16
www.renewssource.com
August 15, 2017
Can You Believe That? By Pat Farrell
PRSRT STD U.S. Postage PAID San Antonio, Texas Paid Permit #1590
When we make our entrance into the world it is understood, perhaps not yet by us, but certainly by others, that we will have a lot to learn about our surroundings, how we cope within them and what will be expected of us from that point on. We learn how to act around others, what is good for us and what is not, and what it will take for us to make it on our own - that is after we learn to walk and talk! And then, as we age, we find that the caveats learned along the way do stay with us well into adulthood. But the question is, do we still believe them to be true? We have heard from our early years and beyond, for example, that milk is good for you as it supplies the Calcium and Vitamin D needed to keep bones healthy and strong, and as parents we will be sure to see that our children meet all their necessary milk requirements. However, multiple studies have shown that there is absolutely no corre-
lation between drinking the recommended amount of milk, or even taking Calcium and Vitamin D supplements, with having fewer bone fractures, but most of us still believe it to be so. Do you remember the “5 second rule” that says germs don’t have time to get to a piece of food dropped on the floor so long as we recover it within 5 seconds (if we can get there before our pets do)? Wrong - the cleanliness of the floor is far more important than the time factor, since bacteria can reach any food item within milliseconds, so be careful if you still do subscribe to the “rule.” And just think about all we have heard over the years about sugar, i.e. 1) honey is healthier than regular sugar and brown sugar is better for you than white – well, sugar is sugar and the sugar in natural products like fruit and that in synthetic products like candy is the same, so what one should really be paying attention to is the fact that candy typically contains more sugar per serving and thus has more calories. 2) sugar causes hyperactivity in children – one might think that could be so after noting the behavior of kids at a birthday party after all the cake, candy and ice cream has been consumed but most in the medical industry maintain there is no known link between sugar and hyperactivity in children (they are just active little devils in good company). 3) sugar causes diabetes - the truth is, if you have diabetes, sugar can be a problem for you, but if you do not have diabetes sugar will not be the cause of it, but watch out for being overweight! Have you ever made the comment that someone was “as blind as a bat?” Well, you might want to rethink that because, although many bats use echolocation to move from place to place, they all can see! And, you may have heard it said of someone who seems to be ignoring what is going on
around them, that they were acting like an ostrich which “buries its head in the sand.” Well that too has been debunked since ostriches never stick their heads in the sand but rather when threatened, they just lie on their side and “play dead.” Also, it has been said that your pet cat or dog is color blind, but that too is false as these pets are not color blind but rather see colors very differently than we do. There has always been discussion at Thanksgiving time when most of the family settles down for a little snooze after the meal (except the clean-up crew) that it is the result of the tryptophan (an amino acid thought to aid in sleep) found in the turkey. Well consider this – there is more tryptophan found in cheddar cheese than in turkey so perhaps it is just the size of the meal during holidays, rather than the turkey that is responsible. Granted tryptophan activates certain cells in the brain but then remember it is said we only use 10% of our brain capacity, right? Wrong! Although the brain is only 3% of a person’s body mass it uses 20% of the body’s energy, and over the course of a day you will use your entire brain in some way. And while on the subject of brains: the brain does continue to produce new cells; and there is no evidence that individuals tend to be either left-brained (creative) or right-brained (analytical). So for those of us who occasionally find ourselves in social situations where beverages, that are stronger than water, are being offered here are some things of which we should be aware including: it is commonly believed that eating before drinking will keep you sober, but it turns out it only slows down the time it takes for alcohol to get into the bloodstream, and eating a lot after drinking will definitely not help to ward off the impending hangover; and speaking of hangovers, the “hair of the dog” as in have a little
more of what one had the night before or to just try an early morning Bloody Mary will not cure, but can prolong one’s hangover miseries; and if you believe that the lines found on Solo cups are there to help measure the drinks for the bar wherein the bottom line is for alcohol, the midline for wine, etc. you are not alone, however the Solo Company is very adamant that that is not the purpose of the lines. My Mother, along with a host of others, always said don’t go out in the cold weather with wet hair, or don’t sit in a draft as I would be sure to “catch a cold,” and while it is true that one is more apt to have a cold during the winter it is more likely the result of more people staying indoors during the cold months where one is more likely to catch the virus from being in close quarters with one who already has it; which brings up the subject of viruses and the fact that so many run to the doctor’s office or clinic to get an antibiotic for their cold when it is a fact that antibiotics have no effect on viruses. All of the foregoing items fall into the category of “myths” which are defined as widely held, but false beliefs or ideas. The term myth can also refer to a traditional story, especially one concerning the early history of a people or one that explains some natural or social phenomenon, and typically involves supernatural beings or events. Myths are essentially folk tales, legends, fables, sagas or folklores or in general, mythology, as in the ancient Greek myths. And that leads us to the greater subject of mythology which is one that deals primarily with the Greek Gods who are significant enough to have had a multitude of books written about them that address their antics. When it comes to Greek Mythology we will find that it is also responsible for a significant part of our English vocabulary, but that is for another time!