Old Wives Tale: Fact or Fiction

Posted by Heather VanNest

St. Petersburg, Florida—Old wives' tales are passed down from generation to generation, offering advice about experiences we all share and may worry about.

But, how true are they?

Prevention magazine looked into a bunch of the most popular ones and reported the results in its September issue.

On The Early Show Tuesday, Prevention Editor in Chief Liz Vaccariello filled in viewers about several of them.

To see the complete article in Prevention, click here.

Here's some of what the article says about the ones she talked about:

It's safe to follow "the five-second rule" for food dropped on the floor.

VERDICT: Fiction It's probably not even safe to follow a 1-second rule: The transfer of bacteria from a contaminated surface to food is almost instantaneous-or, at the very least, quicker than your reflexes.

BOTTOM LINE: If you've fully sterilized your floors, go ahead and serve a whole meal under the table. But there are 76 million cases of food-borne illness annually in the United States according to the CDC, so barring that level of cleanliness, avoid eating food dropped on the floor.

Cell phones are dangerous to use in hospitals because they can interfere with medical equipment.

VERDICT: Jury's out There's a chance that a cell phone call in the wrong spot can cause ventilators, syringe pumps, or even signal pacemakers to pulse incorrectly, according to a 2007 Dutch study, which found that 43% of the phones caused electromagnetic interference with critical-care equipment. However, a Mayo Clinic study a year prior to this found no instances of interference and advised hospitals to drop or revise their cell phone bans.

BOTTOM LINE: Use a designated cell phone area in a hospital, which most now offer — or use a call as an excuse for a walk-and-talk outside for some fresh air and exercise. If that isn't possible, have a calling card available to use a hospital pay phone.

Cracking your knuckles can cause arthritis.

VERDICT: Fiction If you're suffering from osteoarthritis in your hands, it certainly has nothing to do with this nervous tic. One study at the former Mount Carmel Mercy Hospital in Detroit compared 74 people (age 45 and older) who had been chronic knuckle crackers for decades with 226 who always left their hands alone; researchers found no difference in the incidence of osteoarthritis between the two groups.

BOTTOM LINE: Get to the bottom of what's causing the nervous tic in the first place — you may crack your knuckles more often at work than at home, for example — and address those sources directly.

Cola-type soft drinks can damage your kidneys.

VERDICT: Fact Despite their global popularity, there's nothing remotely healthy about cola beverages: Drinking 16 ounces or more daily (whether diet or regular) doubles your risk of chronic kidney disease, according to a recent NIH study of more than 900 people. Experts suspect the ingredient phosphoric acid may be the culprit.

BOTTOM LINE: If you're going to indulge in an occasional soda, go for Sprite, 7-Up, Fresca, and the like. The NIH study found that non-cola drinks didn't have the same impact on the kidneys. But you'll be better off if you skip soda altogether.

"Double-dipping" spreads germs from one chip to another.

VERDICT: Fact A double-dip deposited thousands of saliva bacteria into the dip — and of those, 50 to 100 were later transferred through the dip to a clean cracker, presumably destined for another guest's mouth. Still unknown, however, is how long such bacteria can survive in the dip or if they can actually infect another dipper upon ingestion.

BOTTOM LINE: You better be pretty comfy with your party guests. Eating from a dip after someone has dipped twice is basically the same as kissing that person.

Sitting too close to the TV is bad for your eyes.

VERDICT: Fiction Like many electronic devices, TVs ordinarily give off low levels of radiation. Before the 1950's, television sets emitted levels of radiation that after repeated and extended exposure could have heightened the risk of eye problems in some people. But modern televisions are built with proper shielding, so radiation is no longer an issue. So while this might have been an issue for your grandmother's generation who gives you these warnings, it is no longer true today.

BOTTOM LINE: Sitting closer than necessary to a TV may give you a headache, but it will not damage your vision.

CBS News

Bugged and tracked via your cell phone

author: Henk Ruyssenaars - Ex Scandinavia correspondent e-mail: fpf@chello.nl

People at LM Ericsson in Sweden went on strike three decades ago because they refused to make telephones with build-in bugging software for the dictatorial Stroessner regime in Paraguay. Nowadays people - like in Greece - are killed or 'suicided' if they talk about what really can be done via a cell phone.

IF YOU THINK IT'S DIFFERENT IN YOUR COUNTRY, THINK AGAIN

FPF - Amsterdam/Stockholm - November 27th 2007 - The globally cooperating telephone companies Vodafone and Ericsson got hung up in Greece's phone-tap scandal, because they of course knew everything about the cell phones with build-in software they have been selling for ages. In Greece this was definitely not true: ''Ericsson says it has checked the networks of the three other Greek cellphone-service providers that use its equipment as well as a number of other customers world-wide and hasn't found traces of this type of illegal bugging software." This is crap of course: the bugging and tracking program is nowadays always build-in.

In a statement Vodafone spokesman Ben Padovan said: "As far as Ericsson knows, this is a unique incident. We have never discovered anything like this before or since." And he totally forgot about all the build-in tapping software. He also forgot to mention that he represents Vodafone which since its start cooperates with the Israeli secret service Mossad and affiliated CIA, BND in Germany, SÄPO in Sweden etc. Some experts and politicians say the operation appears to be the work of foreign intelligence agencies, given its sophistication.*

All telephone and other data traffic can be tapped by using the United States's secretive Bad Aibling base in the Bavarian Alps, which houses the American global eavesdropping program dubbed Echelon. [And the 'National Security Agency' successors.] And laws, conventions or normal human decency don't count anymore.*

Investigative journalist Christopher Bollyn wrote about it in the American Free Press:

"The most critical computer and communication networks used by the U.S. government and military are secured by encryption software written by an Israeli "code breaker" tied to an Israeli state-run scientific institution. The National Security Agency (NSA), the U.S. intelligence agency with the mandate to protect government and military computer networks and provide secure communications for all branches of the U.S. government uses security software written by an Israeli code breaker whose home office is located at the Weizmann Institute in Israel.*

EVIDENCE OF US COERCION OF IAEA MEMBERS AGAINST IRAQ REVEALED

How it already worked years ago was shown on Sunday March 2, 2003, when The Observer in the UK had a very informative and strongly related article* about how the US junta threatens, twists arms, bullies and in all ways coerces votes using anything - including tapping and blackmailing: "Revealed: US dirty tricks to win vote on Iraq war". A story which was very well documented:

"Secret document details American plan to bug phones and emails of key Security Council members."

And the article included - and still includes - the secret memos.

''The United States is conducting a secret 'dirty tricks' campaign against UN Security Council delegations in New York as part of its battle to win votes in favour of war against Iraq. Details of the aggressive surveillance operation, which involves interception of the home and office telephones and the emails of UN delegates in New York, are revealed in a document leaked to The Observer. Talk about it: dirty tricks?" it was asked. And we all know this is the rotten way it's done by those who orchestrate the wars and profit from it.*

As more troubling revelations come out of Europe, it may become more difficult to ignore how easily spying programs can be hijacked for illegitimate purposes. The brave soul who pursues this line of inquiry, however, should fear for his or her life. And Vodafone? They declined to comment.

THROWING STONES WHEN LIVING IN A GLASS HOUSE?

The years of illegal spying have given the humanoids - which manage the Bush administration and the US/UK/NATO war machine in these financiers group's fight for might and money - power over the media and the opposition. And they all use cell phones. Quote:

''Journalists and politicians don't want to have their adulterous affairs broadcast over television, or to see their favorite online porn sites revealed in headlines in the local press with their names attached. Only people willing to risk such disclosures can stand up for the country.''

The above was stated by Paul Craig Roberts, whom's credentials include Assistant Secretary of the Treasury in the Reagan administration, Associate Editor of the Wall Street Journal editorial page and Contributing Editor of National Review. It is an excerpt from ''My Epiphany'' which I encourage you to read in its entirety - Url. below.) In the Venezuelan news agency VHeadline.com, and written by Chris Herz, there's a good story concerning this:

RED ALERT: UNITED STATES' ESPIONAGE EFFORTS DIRECT SNOOPING ON VENEZUELA!

Washington D.C. based commentarist Chris Herz writes: The British Guardian newspaper reports on a story out of Greece, concerning the suspected wiretapping of government officials in that country by US intelligence interests. This sordid tale lead to the suicide (or murder) of a technician in the Vodafone company which runs the Greek cellular telephone after he discovered and reported illegal activity to his superiors, who apparently were complicitous in this surveillance.

The US press services are now reporting on how techniques of wire-tapping and of the use of cellular phones to track their owners, which were once strictly tools available to counter-espionage agencies, are now being used routinely by police and even private investigators in ordinary criminal or even civil cases. [end excerpt*]

So, wherever you go: as long as you got your cell phone you can be sure it is known where you are.

And 'they' can listen to your conversation and swan song concerning privacy too.

Whether you want it or not.

Don't you feel secure?


HENK RUYSSENAARS


FPF - RELATED:


* RED ALERT: UNITED STATES' ESPIONAGE EFFORTS DIRECT SNOOPING ON VENEZUELA! - You can read the rest here at Url.: http://www.vheadline.com/readnews.asp?id=77085

*A RELIABLE NEWS AGENCY IN VENEZUELA: VHEADLINE - Url.: http://www.vheadline.com/

* ISRAELIS HOLD KEYS TO NSA AND U.S. GOVERNMENT COMPUTERS - Url.: http://www.rumormillnews.com/cgi-bin/archive.cgi?noframes;read=89717

* ILLEGAL WARRANTLESS WIRETAPPING AND THE COWED MEDIA - CONNECTED? - Url.: http://tinyurl.com/pzdtu

* EVIDENCE OF US COERCION OF IAEA MEMBERS AGAINST IRAN REVEALED - Url.: http://disc.server.com/discussion.cgi?id=234999;article=1110;show_parent=1

* DUTCH TAPPING ROOMS ARE NOT KOSHER - The discussion focusses on the tapping installations for telephony and internet delivered to the government in the last few years by the Israeli company Verint. - Url.: http://archief.fnl.nl/ct-nl/archief2002/ct2002-12/aftappen.htm

* ''KILL SWITCH' OR BUGGING: HOW TO USE ELECTRONICS AGAINST PEOPLE - RATED DOWN BY INDYMEDIA IN ISRAEL - Url.: https://israel.indymedia.org/newswire/display/7685/index.php

* TWO STRANGE DEATHS IN EUROPEAN WIRETAPPING SCANDAL - by Paolo Pontoniere and Jeffrey Klein + FPF-link - Url.: http://www.cemab.be/news/2006/08/1809.php

* VODAFONE, ERICSSON GET HUNG UP IN GREECE'S PHONE-TAP SCANDAL - Url.: http://www.rinf.com/columnists/news/vodafone-ericsson-get-hung-up

* WIRETAPPING, EUROPEAN-STYLE - Think Bush's warrantless NSA surveillance is bad? Wait till you hear what the British government does.- Url.: http://www.slate.com/id/2136147/fr/rss/

* THE WEB: PENTAGON'S PRIVATE INTERNET - Url.: http://www.patrickcrusade.org/PENTAGON_PRIVATE_INTERNET.html

* PRIVACY INTERNATIONAL - THE UK WATCHDOG - Url.: http://www.privacyinternational.org/

* NEW EUROPE - THE EUROPEAN WEEKLY - Url.: http://www.neurope.eu/

* THE STATE OF OUR WORLD IN RELATED LINKS - Url.: http://tinyurl.com/2ncumy

* IT'S DANGEROUS TO BE RIGHT, WHEN YOUR GOVERNMENT IS WRONG. - VOLTAIRE

* MAMARAZZI WEB SITE: FOR ARTISTS - PHOTOGRAPHERS AND OTHER BEAUTY LOVERS - Url.: http://tinyurl.com/2k3ehh

* FPF-COPYRIGHT NOTICE - In accordance with Title 17 U. S. C. Section 107 - any copyrighted work in this message is distributed by the Foreign Press Foundation under fair use, without profit or payment, to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the information. Url.: http://tinyurl.com/3z3r6

FOREIGN PRESS FOUNDATION
Editor: Henk Ruyssenaars
http://tinyurl.com/2wegpc

Cellphones can cause eye damage: Dr. Mercola

A recent scientific study identified a link between microwave radiation of the kind emitted by cellular phones and two different kinds of damage to the eye. At least one type of damage apparently never heals.

When the eyeis exposed for a prolonged time to microwave radiation, thereis large-scale damage to the optical quality of the lens. But there seemed to be a maximum level to this kind of damage, and when the exposure stops, the damage begins to heal.

However, at the same time, a different kind of damage occurs at the microscopic level. Tiny "bubbles" appear on the surface of the lens. This kind of damage reaches no maximum level, but instead accumulates progressively, and it did not heal even after the experiment stopped. It was theorized that the bubbles were caused by friction between cellsthat were exposed to the radiation.

Bioelectromagnetics July 2005; 26(5):398-405IsraCast July 27, 2005

Dr. Mercola's Comment:

Electromagnetic field (EMF) radiation from cell phones is a topic that provokes a good deal of controversy. Many experts believe that the radiation is too low-level to cause harm. However, they often base this on an examination of thermal or heat-related effects. The danger from cell phones is far more likely to originate in the low-intensity pulsed microwave radiation that the phones emit.

There is a growing body of evidence that long-term exposure to this kind of cell phone radiation can indeed be a danger. As well as these studies showing they can affect the sensitive cells of your eyes, there has been research indicating that it can cause:

• Brain cancer
• Tumor growth on the auditory nerve
• Possibly Alzheimer's disease
• Many other potential problems

Fortunately, the danger decreases exponentially the farther the cell phone is from your body. If you have a cell phone, I strongly recommend you use a headset, and keep the phone itself well away from your body.

Although that reduces the radiation risk considerably, some emissions can still travel up the headset wire and into the head. Probably the best solution is to get a cell phone with a good speaker phone and always use it. Keeping the phone as far away from your body is the ideal solution.

For many of you this is simply not very practical, so I recommend attaching the newair cell phone headsets that we have just introduced. If you use a cell phone without the speaker phone feature, then this is simply a must. There is no excuse to not use this technology, which virtually eliminates all the dangers of using a cell phone.

There are also, of course, more commonplace dangers to using cell phones. If you use one while driving your car, you increase your chance of having an accident by up to 400 percent. Worldwide, auto accidents account for 23 percentof all deaths from injury, which comes to over1 million deaths each year. At the same time, cancer, another deadly cell phone risk, has surpassed heart disease in America as the leading cause of death for those under 85. Itkills over 1,500 people every day in the United Statesalone.

Every year, more and more people are switching to cell phones. Many are now using cell phones as their only phone, especially among younger people, who could be exposing themselves to EMF radiation and other risks over a period of decades.

Please avoid having yourself become a statistic. If you use a cell phone at all, wear a headset with a ferrite bead, don't use the cell phone in the car, and in general try to minimize your cell phone use. Related Articles: Electromagnetic Fields and Cell PhonesAre Cell Phones Safe For Your Children?"If Mobile Phones Were a Type of Food, They Simply Would Not be Licensed"

Dr. Mercola is the founder of Mercola.com, one of the world's most visited and trusted health websites, and publisher of the free Mercola.com e-newsletter -- the #1 dietary health and wellness newsletter on the Web with over 500,000 subscribers. Dr. Mercola, a physician for over two decades, is also a New York Times bestselling author whose latest book, "Dr. Mercola's Total Health Program," presents his entire renowned dietary health program and has sold over 150,000 copies. He is routinely interviewed by the media for his expert insights, including CNN and ABC World News Tonight. His passion is to change the fatally flawed conventional medical system to one focused on real prevention and cure