The human body is composed of different types of tissues and organs. These organs ensure the homeostasis and viability of the human body. Throughout life, our body goes through various changes such as puberty, growth in height, hormonal changes, and so on. There are several myths about the human body and we need to talk about why they are not true. Figuring out some myths about human body that what is real versus what is fake will help us with our health and wellness and making informed decisions.
Read more about crackdown of some major myths.
Period cramps stop when someone gets in the water
When the myometrium of the uterus contracts, cramping pain happens during periods. At the same time, the inside lining of the uterus which is called the endometrium is being sloughed off. Myometrium is under involuntary control, meaning we cannot control it on demand. On the other hand, we can contract the skeletal muscles of the arm when we want to. One of the main reasons why the myth may have gained some traction is sometimes people will report that they have had less blood flow or at least they felt like they have noticed less blood flow while in water. There may actually be some truth to that and that’s because water exerts a force or a pressure and when someone fully submerges themselves in the water, there is going to be that pressure exerted on the body, and that may slow the external flow of the blood and sloughing endometrium outside of the body. The uterus will still contract and create that sloughing endometrium in blood.
Shaving makes your hair grow back thicker
The biggest influences on hair growth, thickness, and distribution are genetics and hormones. The portion of the hair outside of our skin is known as the shaft but the hair portion that is inside the skin is referred to as the hair root. When we shave our hair, we are mostly getting rid of the hair shaft but if we are to pluck the hair out, that would actually pull our hair root as well. And that is associated with pain because there is a nerve root. Hair follicles in which a hair lies, vary in size. Some follicles might be large and some might be small. If the follicle is larger, the hair is thicker. Some other things that influence the appearance of the thickness of the hair areas if we were to look at a square centimeter of the skin and we were to count the number of hair follicles in that given square centimeter. Development of hair follicles happens in the 12th week of embryonic development where the epidermis of the skin invaginates inwards to create the follicles. Shaving is not magically going to create more of those follicles.
Hemorrhoids develop from sitting on cold surfaces
A hemorrhoid is a dilated, stretched, or bulging vein in the anus. One of the common risk factors is pushing or straining too hard during bowel movements. So, constipation could influence this. Another risk factor is sitting for prolonged periods of time, especially on the toilet. Another risk factor is pregnancy. During pregnancy, the pressure inside the pelvic and abdominal cavities increases but even during labor, the pushing could possibly influence the development of the varicose vein. Aging is also one of the risk factors. Instead of worrying about the temperature of the surface we are sitting on, we might be better served thinking about a high-fiber diet, not straining while we are having a bowel movement.
Tampon gets stuck inside the abdomen
A tampon is a menstrual product designed to absorb vaginal secretions and blood by insertion into the vagina during menstruation. A tampon cannot get lost in the abdomen. Vagina has a cervix at its end which is extremely narrow allowing only blood or semen to get through. So, it is impossible for the tampon to get through the cervix and stuck inside the abdominal cavity.
Catching a cold from going outside in a cold environment with wet hair
Our parents or other family members may have told us that this could happen. In order for us to catch a cold or what we refer to as an upper respiratory tract infection in the clinic, we have to have a pathogen, most typically a virus, get inside our bodies, and then if it is a virus that virus will get inside the cell, try to replicate so it can infect the other cells. It’s not like these viruses are selective to people with wet hair.
