Are tablets more effective if they are chewed up? Are free-range eggs safer and more nutritious? Rumors on the November Science Rumors List

1. "It is better to chew the tablets and take them"

Rumor content: Chewing aspirin can save lives when a heart attack occurs, and other pills are also more effective if chewed.

Truth Interpretation: In the case of an acute myocardial infarction, chewing 300 mg of aspirin is indeed for rapid absorption of the drug, but this is only a "stopgap measure" during an acute illness and cannot be used as a universal method. For example, some drugs are specially made into sustained-release tablets or controlled-release tablets. If they are chewed and taken, the slow administration will become rapid absorption, and the large amount of drug absorption in a short period of time will bring more medication risks. There are also some enteric-coated tablets, which are more fully absorbed in the intestines or have a certain irritation to the stomach. If this type of dosage form of medicine is chewed and eaten, it may affect the absorption efficiency or irritate the gastric mucosa. Therefore, you must read the drug instructions and take it according to the doctor's orders. Don't take it for granted.

Source: Science Refutes Rumors

2. “Free range eggs are safer and more nutritious”

Rumor: Free range chickens exercise regularly and eat more natural food, so free range eggs are safer and more nutritious.

Truth Interpretation: The nutritional value of free-range eggs and ordinary eggs is not much different. However, because most free-range eggs are free-range free-range chickens, the management is relatively extensive, and the food is not quality-assured, the eggs produced are at risk of microbial and heavy metal contamination. Scientists at Macquarie University in Sydney have studied the health issues of free-range eggs. 55 families with backyard chickens were selected and the eggs of free-range chickens were brought into the laboratory for research. The results showed that most of the 61 eggs were contaminated with heavy metals. Compared with commercially farmed eggs, the lead content measured in these eggs is more than 40 times that of ordinary eggs. Therefore, free-range eggs are not necessarily safer than ordinary eggs, and you must have the right attitude towards this.

Source: Toutiao refutes rumors

3. "If you have back pain, you should sleep on a hard bed"

Rumor content: Soft mattresses are more likely to "collapse", so people with back pain should choose a hard mattress with good support to support their waist.

Truth: Whether we lie flat or on our side, our body has a suitable physiological curvature. Whether it is a wooden bed or a too soft bed, it does not conform to the physiological curvature of the body and cannot provide good support for the body. Therefore, the way to relieve "low back pain" should be to replace a bed with moderate hardness and softness, so that the body can fit the bed surface perfectly and the twisting of the spine is minimized. In addition, low back pain may also be caused by injuries, so you should see a doctor in time for examination.

Source: Toutiao refutes rumors

4. “Irradiated food will cause the loss of nutrients in the food”

Rumor: Irradiation sterilization will damage the nutrients in food.

Truth Interpretation: Irradiation has strong penetrating power, and the irradiation dose is low, which will not cause changes in the temperature of the food itself. Therefore, studies have shown that relatively stable proteins, essential amino acids, carbohydrates, fats, minerals, and trace elements in food remain basically unchanged before and after irradiation. However, the stability of vitamins is relatively poor. Vitamins A, B1, C, and E are relatively sensitive to irradiation and are easier to decompose. However, these vitamins are less heat-resistant. Therefore, compared with heat sterilization, irradiated foods maintain vitamins better. In general, the mature food irradiation technology does not pose a threat to food safety, nor does it lose the taste and nutritional value of the food itself. There is no need to be afraid of "irradiation"!

Source: Science Refutes Rumors

5. "Children who lie are learning bad habits and should be educated and corrected in a timely manner"

Rumor content: Lying among young children is a serious problem and must be taken seriously and criticized severely to prevent children from going astray.

Truth Interpretation: It is normal for young children to lie. Lying requires very advanced thinking skills, which can only be acquired when a person is two or three years old, or even three or four years old. When a child has the ability to lie, he will understand that if he can convince his parents that he has not done anything bad, he can escape punishment. At this time, the child will lie without being taught. Such small lies just show that the child is growing up normally. Parents only need to educate the child patiently and express that they are sad about being deceived by lies. There is no need to exaggerate and strictly discipline or even spank the child, otherwise it will be detrimental to the child's development.

Source: Science Refutes Rumors

6. "Drink eight glasses of water every day"

Rumor content: People produce a lot of toxins every day, so you must drink eight glasses of water a day to detoxify.

Truth interpretation: The "Dietary Guidelines for Chinese Residents (2022)" recommends that under mild climate conditions, adult men with low physical activity levels should drink 1700ml of water a day and adult women should drink 1500ml of water a day. If calculated with a 300ml cup, men drink about 6 cups of water a day and adult women drink 5 cups of water. So it is not accurate to just remember that it is "eight glasses of water". It also depends on the size of our own cups. In addition, we must avoid drinking water violently or drinking excessive amounts of water, which can easily lead to the so-called "water intoxication", also known as dilutional hyponatremia. The kidneys produce about 1L of urine per hour. If you drink a lot of water, it exceeds the metabolic capacity of the kidneys, which will cause water intoxication. Therefore, there is no need to stick to the number of cups. Drinking multiple times, small amounts, and slowly is healthy.

Source: Toutiao 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

Platform support: Tencent Jiuzhen, Weibo Rumor Refutation, Toutiao Rumor Refutation, Douyin, Dad Review, NetEase Health

List of review experts (in order of the number of strokes of surnames)

Chen Peng, Vice Dean of the School of Journalism and Communication, Nankai University

Yuan Zhiqin, Associate Professor, Beijing University of Chemical Technology

Tang Qin, Director and Researcher of the Science Popularization Department of the Chinese Medical Association

Han Hongwei, Director and Researcher of Risk Communication Department, National Food Safety Risk Assessment Center

Fan Chunlei, Associate Researcher, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences

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