How many times have we heard, or used the expression “I know that for a fact?”
The dictionary says that a fact is a piece of information that is known to be true.
The truth is that there are many common facts which simply aren’t true!
But, since none of us can possibly know everything about everything, how can we know?
At Life Daily we recognize that you don’t have the time – and we don’t have the space – to list every fact which isn’t.
So we’ve selected just a few of the most popular fallacies.
A few moments looking through our list, and it may surprise to discover common facts that just aren’t true:
1. Going out with wet hair makes you sick
Researchers have proved that people who are chilled are no more likely to get sick than those who are not. Whether your head is dry or wet makes no difference to the chances of catching a cold.
2. Vikings wore horned helmets
No they didn’t! It’s true that helmets in this style did exist in the region, but they were only used for early ceremonial purposes and had largely faded out by the time of the Vikings.
The myth of the horned helmets was really boosted by the costume designers for Wagner’s “Der Ring des Nibelungen” who put these helmets on the singers in the late 19th century.
3. Sugar makes kids go crazy
Kids may go crazy for many reasons, but consuming too much sugar isn’t one of them – at least, not according to The Journal of the American Medical Association.
It published a review of 23 studies on the subject of kids and sugar and concluded that sugar doesn’t affect behavior. On the other hand, some scientists warn that sugar can make you dumb.
4. Most of your body heat is lost through your head
The common belief is that you lose somewhere around 98 percent of your body heat through your head, (which is why you have to wear a hat in cold weather). Except that you don’t.
The fact is that the amount of heat released by any part of the body depends mostly on the surface area, so you would lose more heat through an exposed leg or arm than a bare head.
5. Cracking your knuckles leads to Arthritis
While this might seem a reasonable supposition, it’s not true. There is no evidence of such an association. However, there have been reports in medical literature which link knuckle cracking with damage to the ligaments surrounding the joint, or dislocation of the tendons. But not Arthritis!
6. Napoleon was short in stature.
The fact is that Napoleon was 5 feet 7 inches (170 centimeters) tall – slightly taller than the average height for a man in France at the time.
The myth arose from a mathematical mistake in converting centimeters to inches.
7. Before exercising you need to stretch
But, if you do, it will actually slow you down. Research has shown that stretching before a run can result in a 5 percent reduction of efficiency. Italian researchers confirmed that stretching is also counterproductive in cycling. And there is no scientific evidence that pre-exercise stretching reduces injury risk.
8. Cholesterol in eggs is bad for the heart
This assertion arose in the 1960’s, but more recent studies have found that dietary cholesterol (the cholesterol found in food) does not negatively raise your body’s cholesterol. It is the consumption of saturated fat that is the problem. The solution? Eat eggs, don’t eat steak!
9. Seven “dog years” equal one human year
Everyone knows this for a fact – but it isn’t.
Your 3-year-old dog is 21 years old in human years, right? Wrong! The general consensus of experts is that dogs mature faster than humans, so they reach the equivalent of 21 years in only two. After that, the aging slows down to the equivalent of four human years per year.
How to calculate your dog’s age correctly? Subtract two from the age, multiply that by four and add 21.
10. George Washington had wooden teeth
This is one of the most enduring myths, but the fact is that his dentures were NOT made from wood.
It is true that Washington started to lose his teeth in his 20s, but his four sets of dentures were made from gold, hippopotamus ivory, lead, and human and animal teeth.
So, what are you to do, now that you know that facts you always believed aren’t true?
We suggest that you mentally adjust your “concept control” and continue to read Life Daily as we bring you more real facts in future editions.
If you know of other facts that aren’t true, you can tell our readers by simply using the comments feed below.
