Myths around Christmas and New Year

By now everyone knows that poinsettias aren’t poisonous – though I don’t think they are recommended eating. But there are other well-recognized myths, some of them beieved by doctors, which have been proven false. The British Medical Journal has an article listing some of them.

1. Holiday candy doesn’t make kids more hyperactive. At least 12 studies have shown that sugar doesn’t change children’s’ behavior, but if parents think a child has been given a candy treat they may perceive subsequent behavior as ‘hyper’.
2. Avoiding eating at night won’t stop weight gain. In fact, there’s no evidence of a link between the timing of eating and weight increase. It’s what you eat, not when you eat it.
3. Suicides are not more frequent during the upcoming holidays. Here again, there’s no evidence from well-conducted studies that suicides are more common at holiday times. And it’s not related to the ‘winter blues’, either. Worldwide studies have shown that suicide is, in fact, more common in summer months.
4. There is no cure for a hangover – except for not getting drinking too much in the first place.

The article also suggested that the concept of ‘50% loss of heat’ through the head was not true, and shouldn’t force men to wear hats in cold weather. This seems to be only half-true (or half-false) – it’s more complicated than one might think. A couple of comments point out that it all depends on the circumstances: e.g. how much the rest of the body is protected from heat loss . . . So, men, wear hats if you’re bald and not wearing a swimsuit when it’s cold outside.