Things Our Mother Told Us That May (or May Not) Have Been True

Some may call them "Old Wive's Tales" or even "Superstitions" or  "Myths," but we all heard them from our Mom. Some of them may have actually contained a grain of truth. My mother had a million of them. Did your Mom or Dad use of any of these?

Eating fish and drinking milk together can be poisonous and can cause skin problems - No studies have ever proven this, but my mother would not ever serve them together to me even when I was in my 50's.

Don't sleep with your socks on; it can cause a cold - Mom was pretty firm about this one. I sneaked into bed one night with my socks on just to test it and, sure enough, I got a cold a few days later. It must have been a coincidence, because there's no science to back it up. However, I still won't sleep in my socks, .

Don't swallow chewing gum. It will stay in your stomach for seven years - It does not stay in your tummy any longer than any other food BUT your body cannot digest gum. It's trip through your system to the outside world is mostly unchanged  and emerges on a normal schedule.

To avoid car sickness, eat bacon before beginning a trip - One of my Mom's favorites. I didn't believe it was true and neither did my Father but since we both loved bacon, we didn't argue.

Don't read in a moving car, it will make you car sick - This one is true. I did a lot of personal research and proved it many times.

As tasty as it looks, don't eat freezer frost from the fridge - I think the theory was that it had some Freon in it that was not healthy even though it looks like a snow cone. However,  I have since learned that the ice is made from water, not gas. Now I can eat freezer ice, but we have a frost free fridge. Darn.

You must wait a hour after eating to go swimming - Evidently this is not true. It takes several hours for food to leave the stomach anyway. Swimming too soon after eating was supposed to cause cramps. Since we lived right next to the city public pool, I tested this many times and never got the cramps. Sometimes I actually ate WHILE I was in the pool and never got cramps.

Eating carrots will improve your eyesight - They do contain vitamin A, which is good for your overall health and can do no harm, but they're not a cure-all for bad eyesight. I think this was just an "old mother's tale" that was dreamed up to get us to eat carrots. The vegetable should have had a PR person like spinach did with Popeye the Sailor Man.

Don't swallow watermelon seeds; they will sprout in your stomach - Some people really believed this. Actually raw watermelon seeds are not digested and make the same trip downstairs that chewing gum does. You actually can eat the seeds which are full of vitamins and are very healthy, but you have to dry them and do other stuff like sprouting them and it seems to be a lot of work. I'll just stick to eating their melon part.

Starve a cold, feed a fever - Another old family favorite. I never lost my appetite when I got sick so I used the old saying "feed a cold, feed a fever."  This turns out to be correct. You should keep eating a healthy diet and even more importantly--keep hydrated.

Drink 7UP, Sprite, ginger ale or Sierra Mist for an upset tummy - Actually this is true. Clear carbonated drinks can help settle the stomach. Mom kept a bottle of 7UP in the fridge for a special "sick drink". I still do today.  You feel even better if you add a little gin.