Old Wives' Tales Answers

Ok, believe it or not, here are my answers to yesterday's post.


Sorry Matthew, but there aren't very many that are considered to be true.

Put butter on a burn. FALSE, it helps keep the heat in and increases damage.

One of the best ways to stop a nosebleed is to tip your head back. FALSE , this just makes the blood flow down the throat and into the lungs, hiding the fact that the flow is continuing.

Black coffee sobers you up. FALSE, it does not lower the alcohol content in the body. So what you have is a wide awake drunk.

Drinking coffee will stunt your growth. FALSE

When a newborn smiles, It's only gas. FALSE

Solid foods help a baby sleep through the night. FALSE

A cat will steal a baby's breath. FALSE

Don't pick up a baby every time she cries. It's good for a baby to cry, it exercises the lungs. FALSE!

If you carry a baby high, it's a boy. If you carry a baby low, it's a girl. FALSE

Raising your hands above your head causes the umbilical cord to strangle the baby. FALSE

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. TRUE

Carrots are good for your eyesight. TRUE, they are an excellent source of carotene.

Fish is brain food. TRUE!

Brown eggs are more nutritious than white eggs. FALSE

A little warm milk will help you go to sleep. TRUE, and it doesn't even have to be warm. It has calcium which relaxes muscles and tryptophan, a protein that enables the brain to produce serotonin, which helps switch on the brain's sleep centers.

Chicken soup for a cold. TRUE

Swallowing gum takes 7 years to digest. (Well, actually it will (to put it nicely) plug you up. At least that's what my mom said.) FALSE! of course.

If you swallow a watermelon seed, it will grow inside your belly. (I've always told my kids that.) FALSE

Cracking your knuckles causes arthritis. FALSE

If you pluck a gray hair, two will grow back in its place. FALSE, I'm sure lots of people are glad of that.

A ring around the moon means rain.TRUE, those "haloes' are precursors of rain.

Put a steak on a black eye.TRUE! It's cold and conforms to the contours of the face. It keeps swelling down and helps stop the internal bleeding.

Feed a cold, starve a fever. FALSE

Shaving makes your hair grow back thicker. FALSE

Don't touch poison ivy blisters, you'll spread them. FALSE, the plant resin is what spreads it.

Don't go out with wet hair, you're catch cold. FALSE, colds are caused by viruses.

Don't read in dim light, you'll ruin your eyes. FALSE

Watching too much TV is bad for your eyes. FALSE

The little white marks on your fingernails are for each lie you have told. FALSE, but it's a good way to get a child to confess.

Playing in the fire will make you pee the bed. Couldn't find the answer to this, but I'm sure it's FALSE.

Don't cross your eyes, they'll get stuck that way. FALSE

Hope you enjoyed this little lesson on Old Wives' Tales.