As little kids, we believe everything our parents say — until reality comes knocking and we start to realize that some things parents say might not be completely true. Honesty is an important value that most parents seek to instill in their kids. But sometimes in the chaos and exhaustion of parenthood, moms and dads tell a few little white lies. Here are the most common lies your parents have told you (that you still kind of believe).
"No swimming until an hour after eating!"
Is swimming after eating dangerous? You've likely heard this myth come up every time summer rolls around, but is there any truth to it? Do you really need to wait 30 minutes to an hour after eating before you can take a dip in a pool or the ocean? No, you don't have to wait 30 minutes or more to swim after you've eaten. Swimming right after you've had something to eat isn't dangerous at all. The concern was that because digestion diverts some of your blood flow from your muscles to your stomach, swimming might somehow inhibit that necessary blood flow to the stomach, causing cramps so severe that you could drown.
"Sitting too close to the TV will hurt your eyesight."
Not only is this not true, but it just so happens that children are better at focusing on up-close objects than adults. So…old people in the back. Beware, however, that sitting close to the TV may be an indication of nearsightedness. I wish I would've known this my parents have told me for years that I got glasses at a young age because I sat too close to the tv.
"If you swallow your gum it will stay in your tummy for 7 years."
Given all the gum found on the undersides of school desks, benches and basically any other public surfaces you dare to run your fingers beneath, you'd think parents would want to be propagating the opposite, that gum was best swallowed. When gum is swallowed the stomach just pushes it right along…along with whatever other weird things we swallow. It moves relatively intact through your digestive system and is excreted in your stool.
"If you eat a watermelon seed a watermelon will grow in your tummy."
This one is almost true, only, it forgot one crucial step: you have to poop out the seed for the tree to grow. Unless you live in a Skittles commercial. The truth is that watermelon seeds — and other fruit seeds — will simply sail through your digestive system and be eliminated from your body over the course of a day or so. To grow into a fruit, watermelon seeds need to be planted in dirt where they can get the nutrients they need to grow. Your stomach, full of its acidic juices, is not a good place for plants to grow.
"If you keep making that face, your face will get stuck like that forever."
As someone who is very fond of making bizarre faces as a form of expression, this question speaks to me on a profound level. My mom tells me my face will get stuck like that all the time. However, I found out that it won't. Your face will not get stuck in a position you voluntarily put it in, but it could if you have a condition. This is one of the classics. Your face muscles are elastic and will always return to their original shape.
