Hey there viewers!
Urban legends passed on over generations have fed
a mythology around the human body that has often lead to misunderstandings.
Sometimes, these "old wives' tales" that have been passed down from generations
somehow escape being challenged outside scientific and medical professions.
Other times, they can be old but previously accepted science — like
the results of studies from the mid-20th century that have been
found by modern scientific methods to be less accurate than originally thought.
While some of these facts might be true, a lot of them aren’t.
If you are someone who has wondered to yourself if that was really fact or fiction,
Keep watching today’s video where we debunk the common myths about your body.
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Shaving Causes hair to grow back thicker
This is one of the most common myths existing equally among men and women.
Women are scared to shave as they do not want their body hair to grow back in thick stubble.
The boys usually want the opposite, to grow a thick stubble and shave a lot.
But shaving or cutting does nothing to thicken the individual hairs.
There is absolutely no proof of this.
Instead, your hair regrows at the same regular rate and shape each time.
Although it may feel thick or tough when it's stubbly because it's still imbedded in
the skin and less flexible than the portions of hair further removed from the follicle.
Even if your leg hair is so tough that you need a weed-eater,
rest assured that shaving won't make it worse.
Humans use only 10 percent of their brains
This is a rather common myth.
You must have seen it in movies people unlocking hidden brain power and accessing
the “90” percent part of the brain , but that is simply not a possibility in real life.
One fact playing into this myth is that 90 percent of your brain cells are “white
matter” that help neurons survive and they can never be used for brain power.
Only ten percent is the “grey matter” of neurons in charge of thinking.
Saying 90 percent of your brain is wasted this way is like saying
you waste peanuts when you throw out the shells
A simple MRI scan will show you that saying just
a few words lights up way more than ten percent of your brain.
Scientists haven’t uncovered any area of the brain that doesn’t affect thought,
movement, or emotion in some capacity.
Each and every part of the brain is responsible for controlling our words, thoughts and movement.
Buyer beware, those smart pills might not work for you as it says on the label!
The appendix is a useless organ
You might have read about the appendix having no
use in your body and it’s a useless intestinal tube that goes nowhere.
But wait before you judge it so fast.
Recent studies have suggested that the appendix is a reservoir for helpful bacteria.
It stores microbes that are ready to be deployed and fight against
diseases in case your body develops an illness.
During your early years, the appendix has also been shown to help form white
blood cells and certain types of antibodies to fight infections.
If that was not enough, the appendix has also been used as a spare part by
surgeons adapting its folds to make replacement urine ducts.
Not such a useless part after all!
Eating after 8pm causes weight gain
This is yet another common misconception especially among young people and millennials.
But nothing could be further away from the truth.
There is little to no evidence that supports this fact.
People thought that your body’s metabolism slows down at night but it has never been proved.
However, you may be more likely to snack mindlessly in the evenings while
watching television and that lead to weight gain.
So no matter what time you’re eating,
always try and eat regular healthy meals and snacks throughout the day.
Even If you're eating later in the evening,
do so mindfully and eat healthy snacks in controlled portions.
You have only five senses
You must have been taught about the five senses that you have which are sight,
hearing, taste, touch, and smell.
Well, this is a fact that originated in a work by the Greek philosopher Aristotle,
written around 350 B.C.
With recent advancements in the medical field, our understanding of the human body has gotten better.
It has been found that you have way more than five senses.
In fact, scientists aren’t even sure just how many more
are there with estimates ranging from 22 to 33.
Some of those other senses include equilibrioception which is sense
of balance, thermoception that is sense of temperature, nociception is sense of pain,
and kinaesthesia which is sense of movement.
These senses can be absolutely essential for your life.
For example, your sense of thirst helps your body maintain appropriate hydration levels,
and if you lack that sense which is a rare condition called adipsia,
you can become severely dehydrated or even die.
Sadly these senses do not include the famous
“sixth sense” or the ability to communicate with the dead!
Juice cleanses flush toxins out of your body
The latest trend of going on detoxifying juice or liquid diets has become quite popular.
You drink only fresh juices over a period of time, to get rid of toxins in your body.
But does it really work?
Sadly it does not.
Your body already has organs that get rid of toxic chemicals in your blood.
These are your kidneys and liver.
They’re busy taking the toxins out of your blood so the body can excrete it
while you’re downing criminally expensive juices.
Have you ever thought what “toxins” you’re trying to remove, don’t worry,
not a lot of people have thought about that either.
Sure, drinking juice can be healthy — if it doesn’t have loads of added sugar
and still contains fiber but it would not remove any “toxins from your body.
Thin, watery juice is probably doing next to nothing for you.
So stop spending your hard earned money in the name of detox or body cleanse juice diets.
Drink juices for good health, not for toxin removal - just trust the body to do its work.
Sitting too close to the TV can damage your eyes
How many times have you been scolded by your parents to sit away from the
TV while watching it fearing damage to your eyes?
This myth still prevails because back in the 1960s
a popular television company sold color TV sets that emitted excessive amounts
of radiation to the tune of 100,000 times more than federal health safety standard.
These could damage your eyes if you sat regularly near these TV’s.
Although these sets were recalled, but the stigma lingers to this day.
After the 60’s, companies began making TVs with shielding to keep the radiation from affecting
viewers and electronic emissions have not been an issue with TVs made any time after 1968.
However, If you sit close to a TV and spend a long time watching it,
you can experience eyestrain, but the symptoms aren’t permanent.
Eyestrain, characterized by soreness, blurred vision,
headaches, and other symptoms, is caused by looking at any digital screen for too long.
So, always remember to take a break and rest your
eyes every half an hour when you are binge watching your favourite show!