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Articles on Medical myths

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When cooked food falls below 60°C, it’s in the temperature danger zone. riebschlager

Monday’s medical myth: leave leftovers to cool before refrigerating

Food poisoning doesn’t just come from dodgy kebabs, under-cooked chicken and restaurants with poor hygiene practices – it can also occur in the home. And anyone who has suffered a bout of food poisoning…
You might feel crook after a flu vax but the injection itself can’t give you influenza. Nettsu

Monday’s medical myth: the flu vaccine will give you influenza

We hear it all the time: “I don’t want a flu vaccine. It gives you the flu.” The old, the young, and even health professionals make this claim. And it’s usually followed by a personal example like, “the…
Sugar doesn’t play a greater or lesser role in obesity than fat and other carbohydrates. Esther Gibbons

Monday’s medical myth: sugar is the main culprit in obesity

The debate about the health implications of sugar consumption began back in 1972 when Professor John Judkin, from the University of London, published Pure, White and Deadly, which linked sugar intake to…
Peanuts may alleviate some symptoms but they won’t cure your motion sickness. Jetstar Airways

Monday’s medical myth: peanuts stop motion sickness

At the start of The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, the ever-resourceful Ford Prefect buys four packets of salted peanuts, ostensibly to prevent motion sickness. We sometimes get them on flights too…
Studies into the lunar effect show no difference in rates of harm on full moons. Bill Gracey

Monday’s medical myth: hospitals get busier on full moons

It’s another busy night in an inner city hospital emergency department (ED) and patients keep pouring in with injuries from accidents, assaults and self-harm attempts. One veteran nurse turns to a junior…
Neither organic nor conventional food is nutritionally any better or worse for you. Smaku

Monday’s medical myth: organic food is more nutritious

Across the world, outbreaks of food-borne illness, contamination and environmental scares have generated a lot of media attention and plenty of fear around food safety. Think of the recent E. coli outbreaks…
Emo music may be bleak but there’s no evidence to show it causes depression. Flickr/Corrie

Monday’s medical myth: emo music makes you depressed

Like death metal and grunge before it, emo music has copped more than its fair share of criticism since it rose to prominence a decade ago. Rather than being seen as an outlet for young people to express…
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Monday’s medical myth: stress causes cancer

Cancer is a disease of the body’s cells that affects around half of all Australians by the age of 85. Normally cells grow and multiply in a controlled way. But if something causes a mistake to occur in…
There’s no biological evidence to show that chocolate can affect your libido. Roxanne Cooke

Monday’s medical myth: chocolate is an aphrodisiac

There are many ways to a woman’s heart. But is a box of chocolates really one of them? What makes chocolate romantic is entirely contextual. Valentine’s Day is traditionally the time for couples to profess…
You can mix “the grape and the grain” and avoid a hangover if you drink in moderation. Erwyn van der Meer

Monday’s medical myth: mixing drinks causes hangovers

As a general practitioner, I hear a lot of colourful advice from my patients about what they believe constitutes “safe” drinking and how to avoid a nasty hangover. Some of the more pithy sayings – “beer…
If you’re not meeting your weight-loss targets, you need to eat less or move more. Flickr/lism

Monday’s medical myth: ‘my slow metabolism makes me fat’

People who struggle to lose weight often blame their difficulty achieving a healthy weight on their “slow metabolism”. So is this a real barrier to weight loss, or is the real culprit an excess of food…
Children should be taught to play music themselves rather than just listening to it. Naruco

Monday’s medical myth: play Mozart to boost your baby’s IQ

What parent can pass up the chance to boost their child’s intelligence by putting on some nice classical music? The popular idea that IQ scores can be raised by listening to Mozart is a case study in how…
Oysters can still play an important role in romance, even though they aren’t an aphrodisiac. Stephen Coles

Monday’s medical myth: eating oysters makes you randy

The stuff of romance novels or a secret tool to give you a boost in the bedroom? We start the year by examining the truth about oysters. Holly gazed around in awe. Rory had brought her to a tiny waterfront…
In the developed world, where vitamin A deficiency isn’t an issue, eating carrots won’t help you see more clearly. Nerdcoregirl

Monday’s medical myth: eating carrots will improve your eyesight

Getting enough vitamin A is important for healthy eyes. And carrots are a rich and natural source of this vitamin, which is basically a group of chemicals made up of retinal (the active form of vitamin…
90% of the glutamate in our diet comes from protein, not MSG. Kevin H

Monday’s medical myth: MSG is a dangerous toxin

Monosodium glutamate (MSG) is widely viewed as a dangerous food toxin that is responsible for adverse reactions to Chinese food and other meals. But is it really the MSG that’s to blame? Glutamate is a…

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