Can eating sashimi with wasabi "kill insects"? Can looking at green more often protect your eyesight? Here comes the June science rumor list →

1. If a baby has a fever, you can use the method of sweating to help reduce the fever.

Rumor content: If your baby has a fever, just dress him/her in more clothes, cover him/her tightly, and sweat until he/she sweats a lot.

Truth: This is a completely wrong approach. Adding more clothes to cover the baby's sweat will not help reduce the baby's fever, but will make the symptoms worse.

The body temperature center of infants under 6 months old is not fully developed, and they mainly rely on the skin to dissipate heat. If they are covered too much, they cannot dissipate heat through the skin, and their body temperature may become higher and higher, even reaching over 40°C. Some may also develop heat syndrome, which is fatal.

When a child has a fever, parents should try to create a relatively cool and ventilated environment for the child, and take care to reduce the amount of clothing to ensure the child's comfort. In addition, parents should take the child to a nearby hospital for medical treatment as soon as possible.

Source: Science Popularization China

2. Moles on the body should be removed, because moles are the precursors of melanoma and will turn into malignant sooner or later.

Rumor content: Melanoma is a deadly malignant tumor that mostly originates from moles on the skin. Therefore, people with moles on their bodies should have them removed as soon as possible to avoid future troubles.

Fact: This statement is incorrect. Most moles are a reaction to the sun, and they are unlikely to develop into melanoma.

Moles are generally harmless, but you should also pay attention to regular lifelong (monthly) observation to see if they suddenly grow larger in a short period of time, have irregular shapes, irregular edges, or have obvious changes in color compared to before. In addition, some moles should be taken seriously because they have the risk of developing into melanoma, such as: congenital giant moles, dysplastic moles, multiple moles (more than 50), moles at the ends of the limbs, and moles or pigmentation in the digestive tract, reproductive urinary tract, and moles exposed to sunlight for a long time.

If you suspect that a mole on your body has the risk of becoming cancerous, it is recommended that you go to the hospital for a professional examination.

Source: Tencent

3. Blood transfusions between relatives are safer.

Rumor content: In some TV dramas, we often see scenes where parents roll up their sleeves and rush to donate blood to save their children, so many people believe that blood transfusions can be performed between relatives and are safer.

Truth interpretation: This is not true. Severe graft-versus-host disease (TA-GVHD) may occur when blood is transfused between immediate family members. This immune response disease has a high mortality rate.

The human body generally has an immune mechanism. When the blood of parents enters the circulation of their children, it will in turn suppress the children's own lymphocytes and launch an immune attack, thereby causing extensive tissue and organ damage to the recipient, leading to fatal erythroderma, subcutaneous hemorrhage and other transfusion-related graft-versus-host diseases, and in severe cases even causing bone marrow failure.

The closer the blood relationship, the higher the incidence of TA-GVHD. To avoid this disease, blood transfusions between relatives should be avoided.

Source: Science Refutes Rumors

4. Dipping sashimi in wasabi can kill parasites.

Rumor: Parasites in sashimi are not scary. You can kill them by just dipping it in mustard before eating.

Truth interpretation: This approach is of little use and is purely self-deception.

The mustard flavor comes from a chemical called isothiocyanate, which has a bactericidal effect and can indeed kill some bacteria and parasites. However, to kill bacteria and parasites with mustard, two things need to be met: first, time. Whether it is killing bacteria or parasites, a certain reaction time is required. Just dipping lightly will not meet the requirements at all.

The second point is that the parasites need to be found out of the fish fillets and then soaked in mustard. Otherwise, the parasites hiding deep in the fish meat cannot come into contact with the mustard at all, which naturally means that the parasites cannot be eliminated.

To sum up, dipping sashimi in wasabi cannot effectively kill bacteria and parasites in sashimi, but it may make you feel that it tastes better when you eat it.

Source: Science Refutes Rumors

5. Looking at green more often can protect your eyesight.

Rumor content: Change your phone and computer screensavers to green, because green can relieve eye fatigue and protect eyesight.

Truth interpretation: This is a misunderstanding. Strictly speaking, looking at green has nothing to do with protecting eyesight.

The biggest factors affecting eye fatigue are the distance and duration of viewing the screen. Even if the screen is set to green, the eyes will still become dry and tired if viewed for too long. Green light is softer and less irritating. Green can also make people feel comfortable and calm, so people think that green screens are more comfortable to look at. However, it is of limited help in protecting the eyes, especially when viewing objects at close range.

"Looking at more green things is good for your eyes" usually means looking at distant scenery such as grass and trees more often to relax your eyes and relieve visual fatigue.

Source: Science Refutes Rumors

6. Eating fruit before eating is more conducive to nutrient absorption.

Rumor content: Eat meals first and then fruits. The fruits are blocked by the meals and cannot be digested directly. However, fruits themselves are more likely to rot and spoil than meals. By the time the fruits’ turn to be digested, the nutrients have been lost and spoiled, and all that is left is waste. Therefore, you should eat fruits first and then meals.

Truth interpretation: This statement is not credible. Whether you eat fruit before or after a meal, it will not affect the digestion and absorption of nutrients.

The main component of fruit is water, followed by a small amount of carbohydrates, protein, fat and trace amounts of water-soluble vitamins and minerals. The digestion and absorption of these nutrients is not directly related to eating a regular meal.

Therefore, both the "fruit before meal theory" and the "fruit after meal theory" are unscientific. You can choose the order according to your personal situation and habits. But it should be noted that everyone's stomach capacity is limited. Don't be greedy or eat too much of one type of food, which will result in not being able to eat other foods, and don't overeat.

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 published: Scientific rumor-busting platform, China Internet Joint Rumor-busting Platform, "Study to Strengthen the Country" learning platform

Supported platforms: Tencent Jiuzhen, Weibo Rumor Refutation, Toutiao Health, Baidu Knows, Toutiao Rumor Refutation, Douyin, Dad Review, NetEase Health

List of review experts

(In order of the number of strokes of surname)

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

Chen Rui , teacher at the Institute of Communication Psychology, School of Journalism, Communication University of China

Chen Shengjun, researcher at South China Sea Fisheries Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences

Gao Chao, Associate Researcher, Institute of Nutrition and Health, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention

Tang Qin, Chief Researcher, Department of Science Popularization, Chinese Medical Association

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