A lot of beliefs and stories get passed down from generation to generation…and some of them can be harmful, false, and downright DUMB.
Read on to hear from AskReddit users about old myths that some people still believe.
1. Insane.
“I got pregnant in 2002 and people legit told me I shouldn’t raise my arms over my head because the cord would wrap around the baby’s neck.
Not just great grandmas telling me this either. People at my restaurant job fussed at me all the time for getting things off high shelves. Insane.”
2. Don’t do that!
“I cracked my knuckles in front of a friend one time and she said it’d cause arthritis.
I said it was a myth and she said her mum said it does, and she should know because her mum works in X profession.
I think her mum may have told her that to stop an annoying habit.”
3. You’ll be sorry!
“My dad insisted that if you didn’t dry your hair immediately after getting out of the shower you would “catch your d**th of cold.”
As far as he was concerned, letting your hair stay damp would immediately give you a respiratory illness. Similarly, putting away dishes that weren’t completely dry would putrify and poison someone.
I know germ theory wasn’t very well understood when he was a lad, but water was basically the end of all things as we know it to him.”
4. Not true.
“That shaving makes hair grow back thicker and longer.
I wish this was true, so shaving my head would cure male pattern baldness…”
5. Heard that one before.
“That your generation is always the last good generation.
One of my favorite historical texts is this diary ranting about how all the youths are lazy, disrespectful, and don’t know the value of hard work.
It’s from 1100s Japan.”
6. False!
“Swallowed gum will stay in your stomach for 7 years.
Never seen a single wad of gum in the thousands of stomachs I’ve looked into.”
7. A real whopper.
“Anyone can be what they want when they grow up.
This is the original lie.”
8. Italian family.
“Aw man , I come from an Italian family. There are so many crazy old wives tales.
Break a mirror, seven years of bad luck. If your right hand itches – you’re coming into money , if it’s the left you’re losing money. The most bizarre one is putting a glass on someone’s head upside down to see if they have the “Evil Eye 🧿” on them.
A lifeguard in AnaCapri did this to me with a full glass of water to see if the water started to bubble to determine if I had a heat stroke. It was the most bizarre thing in the world. Don’t give power or energy to any of this stuff. Some people are very superstitious.”
9. All of ’em.
“That reading in dim lighting will cause you to lose your eyesight.
That birds will abandon their babies if they have a human scent on them.
That going outside in the rain/cold will make you sick.
That carrots will improve your eyesight.
That it’s illegal to turn the inside lights of the car on at night.
That sugar causes hyperactivity.”
10. Nahhhh…
“Boys playing with dolls (or other traditional feminine toys) will turn them gay.
Or that anything will turn people gay.”
11. Family.
“”You can choose your friends but you can’t choose your family”.
Yes, yes you can choose your family. My best friend has been more of a brother to me during my most difficult moments and my “real” brothers were nowhere to be found.”
12. Pregnancy myths.
“90% of the myths surrounding pregnancy and childbirth.
If the baby’s heart rate is fast it’s a girl. If you crave sweet things it’s a girl, if you are carrying “high” it’s a girl.
They’re the only ones I can think of at the moment but there are so many other myths out there.”
Are there any old myths that you think people still believe?
If so, tell us all about them in the comments.
Thanks, friends!
