Four of health myths that are trusted until now, number one is often found in Indonesia

News24xx.com - Apparently, until now there are still many people who believe in the myth. One of them is myths related to health. Starting from the obligation to drink eight glasses of water a day to stay healthy until the relationship between stress and the growth of gray hair.

Here are four health myths that turned out who has lied to many people


1. Drink at least eight glasses of water a day
There is no formal recommendation as to how much water that humans need. This varies depending on lifestyle, shelter, and health conditions.

The need to drink at least eight glasses of water a day is one of the most widely accepted myths.

The origin of this myth can be found in the 1945 that recommendations by the Food and Nutrition Board.

The recommendation states: "The recommended drinking water requirement for adults is 2.5 liters per day, most of which is contained in processed foods."

According to Dr. Aaron E. Carroll, author of Do Swallow Your Gum: Myths, Half the Truth, and the Truth About Your Body and Your Health, says if water is not the only source of hydration.

In addition, the amount of water your body needs for intake depends on many other factors. Some of these factors include how active your lifestyle is, where you are, and the type of food you eat every day. Also, there is no scientific evidence to suggest that drinking more water has many health benefits.

Conversely, excess of water can lower levels of sodium in the blood that cause water poisoning (also known as hyponatremia).


2. Hair and nails continue to grow after death.
Dehydration of the body after death and drying, gives the illusion that the hair and fingernails may still grow.

According to forensic anthropologist William Maples, the myth that a person's nails and hair continues to grow after death. In order for your nails to grow, your body needs to produce new cells, and this will not happen after your heart stops. No glucose production after you die. The same goes for hair.

But there is a biological basis for such observations. That happens is the skin around the nails will be retraction when dehydrated. This makes the nails look longer than before. When preparing the body, the funeral director sometimes moisturizes the fingertips to counteract this illusion.

The skin on the chin of the dead also dries up. It pulls back into the skull as it happens. This causes the appearance of short and stiff hair on the face of a human that similar to when he has not shaved for a while.


3. Female virgins have a hymen that covering their vagina and appears when they have sex for the first time.

Reality: In many cultures, shortly after intercourse, the husband expects his wife's vagina will bleed,  to prove that his wife is a virgin. This is a silly tradition that is prevalent around the world even today.

A baby girl are born with a membrane that surrounds their vaginal opening.The newborn vaginas tend to be prominent and thick. But as they get older, most of the tissue is thinning and the opening is widening. Most of the hymen tissue runs out due to walking, athletics, and self-exploration with only a little left around the vaginal opening.

Then what causes discomfort and bleeding?

Anna Knöfel of the Swedish Association for Sexuality Education says that sex that do with very fast without foreplay, sometimes damages the sensitive vaginal tissues that cause pain and bleeding.


4. Stress is contributes to gray hair.
Reality: There is no clear connection between stress and gray hair.

According to David Fisher, professor of pediatrics at Harvard Medical School, gray hair is caused by the thinning of melanocyte production that gives color to the hair. He said stress might have little effect to gradually turn gray hair, but the effect is almost negligible.

Tyler Cymet, head of family medicine at Sinai Hospital adds that gray hair usually occurs due to genetics, but stress and lifestyle do not have an effect to make you gray.

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