Sun Protection Factors protect you from the sun - myth. SPF's
only measure UVB protection. UVB rays are rays that are stronger in midday and
summer and cause sunburn. However, many sunscreens don't protect against UVA
rays. These rays are the same strength all day year-round and penetrate glass.
Although both types cause wrinkles, freckles, hyper-pigmentation and cancer,
UVA rays make up 95% of the UV spectrum. In spite of that, the U.S. is the
only industrialized country without UVA protection guidelines. Without
guidelines, people buying sunscreens are burned before they go in the sun.
It's a myth that restaurants are noisy only because of bad acoustics.
In the mid-1980's researchers at Fairfield
University found that
people who listen to loud, fast music when they're eating increase their
chewing rate from 3.83 bites per minute to 4.4 bites. A 2008 French study found
increasing music decibels made men drink more and faster. Then there's seating
people in the middle of the dining room. Customers eat faster because the hustle
and bustle around them makes them uncomfortable. Uncomfortable chairs work the
same way. These are restaurant tricks to turn over tables faster so customers turn
over money faster.
There are myths about food too. Only red wine is heart-healthy
- untrue. Beer, liquors and white wine are just as heart-healthy. According to
an associate professor of nutrition at Harvard's School of Public Health,
it's the alcohol (ethanol) that raises HDL and reduces heart attack risk - not
antioxidants. Organic produce is more nutritious - untrue. According to
researchers at the London
School of Hygiene &
Tropical Medicine, there may be a taste difference, but there's no nutritional
difference. Conventional produce has to be washed to remove herbicides and
pesticides, but produce is just another food "awash" with myths.
Vacuuming carpet frequently damages it - myth! According to
the author of "Speed Cleaning", dirt settling into carpet fibers is
what damages it. Soaking dishes in the sink is safe - myth. According to
Lysol's director of microbiology, germs eat food left on dishes and multiply -
and dishwater provides an excellent medium for germs to grow in. Watering lawns
at midday burns the grass - myth. According to a professor of turfgrass science
at Michigan State University,
the water evaporates too quickly - in fact, too quickly to do much good.
Obviously, good housekeeping requires cleaning out closets, as well as myths.
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