Wednesday, October 25, 2006

10 Useless Medical Myths

Found these quite interesting. Most notable, the idea of overriding the pain of a toothache by icing your hand. I almost hope I get a toothache soon just to try it out!
And of course, a myth made famous by an episode of Friends, peeing on a Jellyfish sting....probably wont work.

Read the whole list at:
http://ririanproject.com/2006/10/25/10-useless-or-even-dangerous-first-aid-myths/
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10 Useless Medical Myths

2. Peeing on a Jellyfish Sting


You’re far more likely to suffer a jellyfish sting than a shark bite, so here’s what you need to know:

First, don’t believe the rumors. Peeing on a stung bit of skin won’t do much to relieve suffering, and you’ll suffer some odd stares, too, doctors say.

“Urine has not been scientifically proven to help in jellyfish stings”, said Dr. Paul Auerbach, an emergency physician at Stanford University Hospital and an expert on jellyfish stings.

“Instead, vinegar is the best first treatment,” he said, when treating stings from North American jellyfish.

But the question still lingers, if no vinegar is in sight is urine better than nothing? While studies haven’t proven it, Auerbach admits he’s known a few people who said urine worked for them.

3. Drinking Booze to Ease a Toothache

“A shot of whiskey is not going to kill the pain of a toothache,” says Charles Wakefield, D.D.S., director of advanced education in general dentistry at Baylor University medical school. Instead of a whiskey on the rocks, just order the rocks: A Canadian study found that rubbing an ice cube on people’s hands killed tooth pain in 50 percent of them. Wrap the cube and rub it on the V-shaped soft spot of your hand, where the bones of your thumb and index finger meet. The cold, rubbing sensation travels on the same pathway to the brain as tooth pain, and by icing your hand, you override the signals from your mouth. When you’re finished, call a dentist. And pour yourself that whiskey.

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