5 Common Medical Misconceptions

Old wives' tales and superstitions have become part of the fabric of human understanding. Today, with the endless information that the Internet has to offer, questions can be answered at the click of a mouse. This, you might think, would spell the end of scientific and medical misinformation, but the sheer quantity of information that is now available is so bewildering that "common knowledge" has been left largely in place. Most people are too busy to fact-check details that don't directly impact their lives. Here, we will briefly run through five medical "facts" that most people have taken for granted since they were children. Waking a sleepwalker is dangerous Sleepwalking can be an unsettling event for the person doing the walking and anyone who happens to witness the event. Somnambulism, as it is also called, occurs in the deepest part of sleep, normally a few hours after onset. Affecting an estimated 1 to 15 percent of the general population, sleepwalking is surprisingly prevalent, particularly among children. It is common knowledge that waking a sleepwalker can give them a heart attack or put them in a coma. However, according to the National Sleep Foundation, the reverse is, in fact, true: it is dangerous not to wake a sleepwalker. Waking a sleepwalker might confuse them, but not waking them might leave them free to fall down the stairs, smash a glass, or get in their car and take a drive (worse things have happened). That said, waking a sleepwalker can occas...
Source: Healthy Living - The Huffington Post - Category: Consumer Health News Source Type: news