Can cancer spread among family members? Eating vegetarian food every day will prevent high blood lipids? Here is the list of scientific rumors for May

1. Should the thyroid gland be removed if a thyroid nodule is found?

Rumor content: Thyroid nodules will develop into cancer sooner or later, so they should be removed as soon as possible.

Truth interpretation : This view is not correct. Not all thyroid nodules need to be removed, and in most cases they do not endanger health. It mainly depends on the size of the nodules, the growth pattern, the functional status, and the pathological nature. Clinically, after the thyroid nodules are found, the doctor will first evaluate and determine the diagnosis and treatment plan. If it is malignant, surgery will be performed. If it is benign, regular follow-up and dynamic monitoring will be carried out. The reason for caution is that the thyroid gland is an important endocrine organ in the human body. It cannot be removed casually, otherwise hypothyroidism, hypocalcemia and other problems may occur. In addition, there are many important nerves and a large number of blood vessels around the thyroid gland. Surgery may damage these nerves and blood vessels and cause health problems. Therefore, if a thyroid nodule is found during a physical examination, there is no need to be too stressed, and there is no need to ask the doctor to remove the thyroid gland.

Source: Science Refutes Rumors

2. If I eat vegetarian food every day, my blood lipids won’t be high?

Rumor content: If you have high blood lipids, you should eat less meat and oil, eat more vegetables, or even only eat vegetarian food. If you don’t consume it, your blood lipids will drop quickly.

Truth interpretation : This statement is not correct. Eating only vegetarian food may not necessarily lower blood lipids, and it may cause protein deficiency, because meat is an important source of protein for us. In fact, fat is not only hidden in fatty meat. Some vegetarian foods, such as cakes, melon seeds and other foods, contain a lot of oil. In addition, cooking methods such as frying and deep-frying will also bring a lot of oil to the food. If we consume too much carbohydrates, our body will also synthesize triglycerides, which is an important component of blood lipids. In addition, the human body has its own metabolic laws. There are many substances that can be ingested through food and synthesized by the body. The regulation process is also relatively complicated. It is not that as long as the intake is reduced, the content in the body will decrease. However, in life, we only need to remember a simple principle-for ordinary people, a rich variety of food means better health.

Source: Science Refutes Rumors

3. Can cancer be transmitted among family members?

Rumor content: When someone in the family has cancer, other family members will soon be diagnosed with the same cancer, so once a family member is found to have cancer, isolation measures must be taken.

Truth interpretation: This statement is wrong. All cancers in humans are not contagious, and cancer will not spread in families. The reason why multiple family members suffer from the same type of cancer at the same time or successively may be partly due to genetic factors, and partly due to similar lifestyles and eating habits. When someone in the family unfortunately suffers from cancer, it is recommended that others change their bad living and eating habits in a timely manner, try to avoid or reduce contact with carcinogens, and conduct regular precise and individualized cancer prevention physical examinations to detect clues of cancer as early as possible, rather than rushing to isolate. In this way, family members can stay away from "cancer" but not away from "love"! .

Source: Science Refutes Rumors

4. Can I reduce myopia and improve my vision through instruments, eye drops, eye patches, etc.?

Rumor content: Children’s myopia can be controlled and reversed by using massagers, training devices, eye patches, eye drops, etc.

Truth interpretation: True myopia is irreversible, and any claim that it can cure myopia is false propaganda. False myopia can be alleviated or controlled through many methods, which makes people mistakenly believe that "myopia" is cured. If the child has been diagnosed with myopia, but the parents use massage instead of wearing glasses, it may delay the control of myopia and may also cause lesions in the periphery of the retina. In addition to maintaining correct eye habits, outdoor activities are the key to preventing children from myopia, because whether it is sunny, cloudy or rainy outdoors, the brightness of the light is higher than that of indoors. Cumulative outdoor activities for more than two hours a day can effectively relieve eye fatigue, help the body secrete dopamine, inhibit excessive growth of the eye axis, and prevent myopia. We must be wary of confusing true and false myopia, and use advertisements that mislead consumers with expressions such as "rehabilitation", "recovery", "reducing the degree", "cure myopia", "myopia nemesis", and "degree repair".

Source: People's Daily Health Client

5. Do I need to prick my ring finger to measure blood sugar, otherwise the measurement will be inaccurate?

Rumor content: To measure blood sugar, you must use a specific finger to draw blood, preferably the ring finger, otherwise the measurement value will have a large error, affecting blood sugar measurement.

Truth Interpretation : At present, the general consensus of experts on this issue is that there is no difference in the blood sugar values ​​measured by ten fingers. However, although there is no difference in the values, clinicians still recommend that patients try to choose the ring finger, middle finger and little finger to draw blood. This is because these fingers are generally less active, have a low probability of infection, less pain and discomfort, and are not likely to affect daily life. In addition, blood sugar measurement must be carried out strictly in accordance with the operating instructions of the blood glucose meter, which is a prerequisite for obtaining accurate results. Never squeeze the blood collection site vigorously to prevent interstitial fluid from mixing into the blood sample and affecting the results. Do not choose fingers that are damaged, infected, scarred or rash for blood collection. When drawing blood, you must also ensure that the fingers are dry, otherwise it will lead to inaccurate results.

Source: Science Refutes Rumors

6. Quitting smoking will harm your health?

Rumor content: Frequent smoking will make the body accustomed to it, and forced smoking cessation will cause discomfort and coughing, which is more harmful than quitting smoking.

Truth interpretation : Quitting smoking is definitely healthier than not quitting. Quitting smoking is uncomfortable because smokers can no longer experience the pleasure brought by smoking, which causes a craving for nicotine and a strong desire to smoke. At this time, smokers who quit will experience a series of withdrawal symptoms. Including anxiety, depression, restlessness, headaches, increased saliva secretion, inattention, sleep disorders, increased blood pressure and heart rate, etc., and some patients will also gain weight. However, the above withdrawal symptoms are normal phenomena in the process of quitting smoking. Although it looks like "sickness", it will not cause adverse consequences to the body, and there are now many smoking cessation drugs that can alleviate these uncomfortable symptoms. In addition, smoking inhibits the movement of bronchial cilia, and after quitting smoking, the excretion function of cilia is restored, and smokers who quit will cough and sputum, which is also normal and not sick. To sum up, smoking is harmful and has no benefits, so it is better to quit smoking sooner rather than later!

Source: Science Refutes Rumors

About the Science Rumors List

Released by the China Association for Science and Technology, the list is reviewed by experts every month. Based on criteria such as timeliness and harmfulness, hot rumors are selected for special interpretation and pushed across the entire network.

**Jointly released: **Scientific rumor-busting platform, China Internet joint rumor-busting platform, "Study to Strengthen the Country" learning platform

**Supported platforms:** Weibo rumor refutation, Toutiao rumor refutation, Tencent Jiuzhen, NetEase Health, Toutiao Health, Baidu Knows, Douyin

**Scientific rumor debunking: **Hosted by the China Association for Science and Technology, the National Health Commission, the Ministry of Emergency Management, the State Administration for Market Regulation and other ministries and commissions, guided by the Central Cyberspace Affairs Commission, and jointly created by national societies, authoritative media, social organizations and scientific and technological workers, it aims to effectively improve the dissemination, guidance and influence of rumor debunking information, so that rumors can stop at the wise and let science outrun rumors.

List of review experts

(In order of the number of strokes of surname)

Wang Qian, Chief Physician of the Emergency Department, the Third Medical Center, PLA General Hospital

Song Shuang, Associate Researcher, Institute of Nutrition and Health, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention

Zhang Yu, researcher at Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, supervisor of doctoral and master's degree candidates

Chen Peng, Associate Professor, Department of Communication, Nankai University

Jia Changkai, deputy chief physician, Xiamen Eye Center affiliated to Xiamen University

This article is produced by "Science Facts" (ID: Science_Facts). Please indicate the source when reprinting.