Old Wives' Tales

Reading from a book.

Old Wives’ Tales

Old wives’ tales are pieces of advice that are supposed to solve common household or medical problems. There are hundreds of old wives’ tales. They were usually passed down orally from generation. Although most of old wives’ tales have been disproved by science, some solutions found in them are true.

Here are a few common old wives’ tales:

“Eating carrots improves your eyesight.”

This is false. Eating carrots is good for your eyes, but it cannot improve your eyesight.

“Reading in dim light can damage your eyes.”

It is false. Reading in dim light puts more strain on the eyes, but it does not damage them.

“If you go outside with wet hair, you’ll catch a cold.”

This is false. Colds are caused by viruses instead of by cold weather or wet hair.

 “Too much loud noise can cause hearing loss.”

This is true. Exposure to loud music or machinery for 15 minutes can cause temporary loss of hearing. Besides, regular exposure to loud noise can cause permanent hearing loss.