What urban legends did/do you believe?

[colontos]

Wait! Look at this! From Wiki:

A single event is not enough to cause damage to the joint, although it is possible that prolonged joint stress due to cracking knuckles may eventually lead to a higher risk of joint damage. The long-term consequences of this practice have not been studied thoroughly, and the scientific evidence is inconclusive. However, the common parental advice "Cracking your knuckles gives you arthritis" may actually be true. In fact, a study by Castellanos and Axelrod found that arthritis was a product of knuckle cracking. They evaluated 300[1] consecutive outpatients at Mount Carmel Mercy Hospital to determine whether habitual knuckle cracking is a risk factor for hand dysfunction. They found a relation with osteoarthritis, and noted that 'knuckle crackers were more likely to have hand swelling, lower grip strength, cancer, and arthritis.'

 

[Ziggy Stardust]

The "We only use 10% of our brain" should be in there. It's unbelievable how many still claim this.

 

[Grisu]

I once knew a guy that actually believed in a variation of the hairy palms tale... It was "Nach 1000 Schuss ist Schluss", meaning that men only have 1000 fertile 'shots' in them, after that you get infertile, hence you should not masturbate

 

[The Last Conformist]

I once knew a guy that actually believed in a variation of the hairy palms tale... It was "Nach 1000 Schuss ist Schluss", meaning that men only have 1000 fertile 'shots' in them, after that you get infertile, hence you should not masturbate

I heard another variant of "Nach 1000 Schuss ist Schluss" - when you've had sex with the same woman a thousand times, you automatically tire of her.

 

[Atlas14]

I thought knuckle cracking does cause arthritis to be worse...because the joints in your fingers are getting inflamed.

And how is too much masturbation bad?

 

[PrinceOfLeigh]

I believed in quite a few Urban Myths on the basis that if that many people told it to me it must be true.

Ahh youth.

And how is too much masturbation bad?

Not if you keep your eyes closed and alternative hands.

There's an Urban Myth about that too. Someone enjoying a little DIY with his headphones on... Anyone heard it? Needless to say I believed that one too.

 

[Eran of Arcadia]

I believed the gum one a little (I still swallowed gum a lot, though) until I reached a certain age when I realized it was ridiculous. Just like I explained to my 8 year old sister - everything moves through your system, and besides, stomach acid is strong stuff.

 

[Whomp]

I was told recently that a dog's mouth is sterile. I'm too lazy to look it up. True or no?

 

[Eran of Arcadia]

I doubt it. Why should they be so special? Pretty much anything organic is full of bacteria.

 

[puglover]

When I was little, my mom kept telling me that Diet Coke stunted growth. Killed brain cells or something. Look where I am today!

 

[Grisu]

I heard another variant of "Nach 1000 Schuss ist Schluss" - when you've had sex with the same woman a thousand times, you automatically tire of her.

you just have to love the idea of the male body having a internal counter for sex

 

[Eran of Arcadia]

That is expressed in Base 10, even better.

 

[Princeps]

And how is too much masturbation bad?

Some believe it helps to prevent depression and certain cancer types. Doesn't sound that bad.

I did once believe that if you cross your eyes they might get stuck.

 

[dgfred]

I was told recently that a dog's mouth is sterile. I'm too lazy to look it up. True or no?

Nothing could be sterile that smells like THAT .

 

[Urederra]

I made my pharmacy practice course in a pharmacy near a small convent and I recall dispensing some stuff to some nuns with hair loss problems. I think it was an antifungal because it is more likely to have fungus growing in the root of your hair if your head is covered all the time. So the baseball cap thing might be partly true. They were old nuns, though. So wearing a baseball cap ALL the time is unhealthy for your hair but if somebody gets bald the cause is more likely to be genetics related.

As for the sex/masturbation, In my special biochemistry course (full year course where we studied clinical test and biochemical and genetical related diseases) I was told that the sperm replenishment rate is 48 hours. So IIRC, when you are giving your sperm either for fertility test or to a sperm bank, they recommend abstinence in the previous 48 hours. So I guess more than once every second day is too much. I don't know the consequences of too much sex, though, and it might be related to your diet too, like to be more likely to have a vitamin or essential aa, fatty acids or phosphorus deficiency.

About the dog's mouth thing, that's a myth, If it were true, we would have dog's saliva based antibiotics in the market right now.

 

[puglover]

I was told recently that a dog's mouth is sterile. I'm too lazy to look it up. True or no?

I saw something like this on Mythbusters. They did find that the dog's mouth was slightly cleaner than the man's, but it was far from sterile.

 

[dgfred]

So, is it ok to crack knuckles then?

Because I just succeeded in breaking the habit. Now I find out it isn't bad after all.

I couldn't play a game of football in High School (or at least I thought I couldn't) without cracking my neck before I put on my shoulderpads . Even now both my knees will crack if I squat
down- I attribute it to years of playing catcher in baseball, but they don't
really bother me at all... yet.

 

[Bamspeedy]

As for the sex/masturbation, In my special biochemistry course (full year course where we studied clinical test and biochemical and genetical related diseases) I was told that the sperm replenishment rate is 48 hours. So IIRC, when you are giving your sperm either for fertility test or to a sperm bank, they recommend abstinence in the previous 48 hours. So I guess more than once every second day is too much. I don't know the consequences of too much sex, though, and it might be related to your diet too, like to be more likely to have a vitamin or essential aa, fatty acids or phosphorus deficiency.

I read somewhere about the lack of minerals also like you listed at the end. The place I read it said that too much masturbating would case erectile dysfunction and/or premature ejaculation, etc. There was a survey for people to fill out and see if they do this too much, but then again the survey was trying to sell some 'pills' that would help replenish the body of the minerals if it was determined you did it too much, so the survey could have been potentially biased to increase sales. But it does make some sense because of what you listed, and the survey did ask things like your age and if you have diabetes and made recommendations for what types of foods to eat.

 

[Rossiya]

Swallowed chewing gum stays inside you for seven years

Pirate voice: Ooo argghhhh, thee evil swallowed chewing gum of doom stays inside the confines of your stomach for seven years and none. Not a second over seven years, yet not a second under. Ooo argghhhh!

 

[Phlegmak]

I was told recently that a dog's mouth is sterile. I'm too lazy to look it up. True or no?

Utterly ridiculous. Dogs eat crap and lick their balls. Think about that the next time your dog licks your face.