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Don't Swallow Your Gum!: Myths, Half-Truths, and Outright Lies About Your Body and Health Paperback – Illustrated, May 26, 2009

by Dr. Aaron E. Carroll MD MS (Author), Dr. Rachel C. Vreeman MD (Author)

4.4 96 ratings

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People have more access to medical information than ever before, and yet we still believe "facts" about our bodies and health that are just plain wrong. DON'T SWALLOW YOUR GUM! takes on these myths and misconceptions, and exposes the truth behind some of those weird and worrisome things we think about our bodies. Entries dispel the following myths and more:

- You need to drink 8 glasses of water a day
- Chewing gum stays in your stomach for seven years
- You can catch poison ivy from someone who has it
- If you drop food on the floor and pick it up within five seconds, it's safe to eat
- Strangers have poisoned kids' Halloween candy

With the perfect blend of authoritative research and a breezy, accessible tone, DON'T SWALLOW YOUR GUM is full of enlightening, practical, and quirky facts that will debunk some of the most perennial misconceptions we believe about our health and well-being.

Print length

240 pages
Language

English
Publication date

May 26, 2009
Dimensions

5 x 0.53 x 8 inches
ISBN-10

9780312533878
ISBN-13

978-0312533878
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Dr. Aaron E. Carroll MD MS
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Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Adult/High School–Two doctors have written a breezy and entertaining, yet relevant and scientific, book full of facts with which to prove our mothers wrong. Divided into six sections, each comprising approximately 10 myths in two pages each, the book covers issues about disease, sex and pregnancy, babies and children, what we eat, and controversial topics. No, it is not necessary to drink eight glasses of water a day. Eating turkey does not make you sleepy. The authors also set the record straight on the five-second rule, the connection between dog hair and allergies, and the dangers of waking a sleepwalker. The final controversial section includes the causes of autism and the connection between the Superbowl and the abuse of women. It is easy to imagine teens browsing through and sharing fun tidbits with one another. In fact, with its offhand tone, liberal use of expressions like sucks and BS, the occasional gratuitous gross-out story, short chapters, and compact paperback format, the book reads as if it were written with teen appeal in mind. At the same time, the authors demonstrate clear research and documentation, including more than 40 pages of references. The introduction explains the difference between association and causation, the trials needed to prove the truth, and why so many misperceptions exist.
Angela Carstensen, Convent of the Sacred Heart, New York City

About the Author

Aaron E. Carroll, MD, MS, is an associate professor of Pediatrics in the Children's Health Services Research Program at the Indiana University School of Medicine, and the Director of the Center for Health Policy and Professionalism Research. Dr. Carroll's current research interest include the use of information technology in pediatric health care, decision analysis and cost-effectiveness analysis, and health policy and professionalism. Aaron Carroll and Rachel Vreeman's research has been featured in The New York Times, USA Today, The Los Angeles Times, Scientific American, Newsweek, and many other national publications. They have appeared on Good Morning America, CBS Evening News, and ABC News NOW.

Dr. Rachel C. Vreeman is an assistant professor of Pediatrics in Children’s Health Services Research at the Indiana University School of Medicine and co-director of Pediatric Research for the Academic Model for the Prevention and Treatment of HIV/AIDS (AMPATH). Together with Dr. Aaron Carroll, their research has been featured in The New York Times, USA Today, The Los Angeles Times, Scientific American, Newsweek, and many other national publications. They have appeared on Good Morning America, CBS Evening News, and ABC News NOW. They are the author of Myths About Sex and Pregnancy, Don't Swallow Your Gum, and Don't Cross Your Eyes...They'll Get Stuck That Way!.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Don't Swallow Your Gum!

Myths, Half-Truths, and Outright Lies About Your Body and HealthBy Carroll, Aaron

St. Martin's Griffin

Copyright © 2009 Carroll, Aaron
All right reserved.
ISBN: 9780312533878
Chapter One

Men with big feet have bigger penises

Have you ever noticed a man with particularly big feet and wondered if other parts of him were just as large? While some claim that a man's penis size can be predicted by the size of his feet, others say that it's the size of his hands or even his nose that really gives away the secret of what's in his pants. This idea of comparing body parts to estimate hidden assets may have originated with discriminating shoppers, but it may also have its roots in real science. The Hox gene in mammals plays a role in the development of the toes and fingers, as well as the penis or clitoris. Given how rarely one hears "gene expression" mentioned along with the talk of penises and feet, it seems much more likely that this myth springs from our desire, as humans, to identify patterns—even when the pattern is not really there. We like to have explanations for things we see, and we like to group like things with like things (in this case, appendages on men).

Despite the similar genetic controls for these protuberances, men with big feet do not necessarily have bigger penises. While at first, the prospects for estimating penile length with a quick glance at a man's feet seemed promising, science now shows us that this is not the case. A study of sixty men in Canada suggested that there was a weak—but statistically significant—relationship between penile length and both body height and foot length (remember—statistically significant doesn't necessarily mean significant in real life). However, a larger study of 104 men, done by two urologists, Drs. Shah and Christopher, which measured penises when pulled to their longest lengths, found that shoe size and penis size were not correlated with one another. An even larger study called the "Definitive Penis Size Survey," which looked at 3,100 men, also found no relationship between shoe size and erect penis size. This was even when men reported their size, as opposed to direct measurement. And when men are asked to report the length of their own members . . . well, let's just say that science also shows us that exaggeration routinely comes into play. Furthermore, the "Definitive Penis Size Survey" was never peer-reviewed or published in a scientific journal. We trust the results from Drs. Shah and Christopher the most, but this survey backs them up. Studies also show no link between finger length and penis size. You can look at a guy's feet or hands all you want, but they won't tell you anything else about how he measures up.

All rights reserved. This work is protected under copyright laws and reproduction is strictly prohibited. Permission to reproduce the material in any manner or medium must be secured from the Publisher.

Continues...
Excerpted from Don't Swallow Your Gum! by Carroll, Aaron Copyright © 2009 by Carroll, Aaron. Excerpted by permission.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ 031253387X
Publisher ‏ : ‎ St. Martin's Griffin; First Edition (May 26, 2009)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 240 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 9780312533878
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0312533878
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 9.6 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5 x 0.53 x 8 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #717,093 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #355 in Doctors & Medicine Humor
- #687 in Health, Mind & Body Reference
- #7,856 in Encyclopedias & Subject Guides

Customer Reviews:
4.4 96 ratings

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Aaron E. Carroll
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Aaron E. Carroll, MD, MS is a Professor of Pediatrics and Associate Dean for Research Mentoring at Indiana University’s School of Medicine, and Director of the Center for Pediatric and Adolescent Comparative Effectiveness Research. His research focuses on the study of information technology to improve pediatric care, health care policy, and health care reform.
In addition to his scholarly activities, he has written about health, research, and policy for CNN, Bloomberg News, the JAMA Forum, and the Wall Street Journal. He has co-authored three popular books debunking medical myths, has a popular YouTube show called Healthcare Triage, and is a regular contributor to the New York Times’ The Upshot.
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Rachel Vreeman MD
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A pediatrician and global health services researcher, Dr. Vreeman is the Chair of the Department of Global Health and Health System Design at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. She is also a Professor of Pediatrics and the Director of the Arnhold Institute for Global Health. Dr. Vreeman chairs the global pediatric working group of the NIH-funded IeDEA consortium, currently the largest global cohort of patients living with HIV. Her research portfolio focuses on the long-term care of children and adolescents living with HIV globally. Dr. Vreeman’s research focuses on sustain long-term HIV care for children and adolescents living with HIV in resource-limited settings, with much of her work based in East Africa. Her research work examines adherence to therapy for HIV, viral resistance, disclosing HIV status to children, mental health challenges and HIV-related stigma.
Dr. Vreeman also investigates how common medical beliefs become accepted, even in the face of evidence to disprove them. She has co-authored three popular books on medical myths (St. Martin's Press):
Don't Swallow Your Gum! Myths, Half-Truths, and Outright Lies About Your Body and Health
Don't Cross Your Eyes... They'll Get Stuck That Way! And 75 Other Health Myths Debunked
Don't Put THAT in THERE! And 69 Other Sex Myths Debunked
Her myth-busting work has been featured on CNN, The Dr. Oz Show, Good Morning America, CBS Evening News, and in The New York Times, USA Today, The Los Angeles Times, Scientific American, Newsweek, and many other national publications and media outlets.
Dr. Vreeman graduated summa cum laude from Cornell University with a BA in English. She received her MD from Michigan State University College of Human Medicine, and completed her internship, residency, and a chief residency in pediatrics at the Indiana University School of Medicine. She also completed a fellowship in Children's Health Services Research and a masters degree in clinical research at the Indiana University School of Medicine.
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Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5

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BIOS

Great so far

Reviewed in the United States on July 21, 2011

Verified Purchase

This book will change your life....or at least make you less stupid. Our parents and friends have told us a lot of lies...this book helps to spread the truth. Haleluah!!
All joking aside, this book is written quite well, and also presents the facts in a "hard to dispute" way. It may make some of your friends mad at you...it did with me (apparently people like to think that a dogs mouth is cleaner than a humans' mouth...even though they usually eat whatever comes out of them).
I would highly recommend this book.

One person found this helpful

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Jennifer A. McDonald

Review

Reviewed in the United States on October 18, 2017

Verified Purchase

Entertaining. Parents especially should read this so they don't lie to their children. This book reinforces that people are dumb and you need to think critically.

One person found this helpful

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Lila Nox

This Clears Up Any "Facts" Your Parents Or Grandparents Swore Were True!!

Reviewed in the United States on January 23, 2015

Verified Purchase

I knew most of these myths, but it was fun reading this book. It is a read for all ages. No, gum does not make your insides stick together, and many more myths are cleared up. This book really made me laugh out loud. It is chalked with facts about the human body, and written tastefully with a rye sense of humor!

2 people found this helpful

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Steve in Tustin

Don't Swallow your Gum Review

Reviewed in the United States on July 14, 2009

Verified Purchase

A quick, mildly informative read for those curious about cultural concepts related to our physical body. A debunking, to some extent, of conventional medical wisdom. Helpful, but not exactly earth-shaking. A few of the topics covered could have used further documentation. Overall, it constitutes a good starting point to answer a number of our more common questions.

Helpful

funnierthanme

Don't Swallow Your Gum

Reviewed in the United States on June 21, 2014

Verified Purchase

I saw an ad on TV about this book and thought it would be a fun read. I ordered it right away. It certainly is funny.
It's revealing and unbelievable the lies and half-truths we've all grown up believing.

It's a good read.

Helpful

HMcColgan

Awesome, fun, interesting

Reviewed in the United States on March 4, 2011

Verified Purchase

Though the authors don't give exact data/study references to their facts, much of the items in the book, I have heard before. Incredibly interesting. Kindle version nicely translated/digitized. The book is fun, light and well written. Easy to read. Some good things to know are mentioned in the book.

Reviewed in the United States on January 24, 2013

Verified Purchase

Well this book has made me feel silly . I believed many of the Myth's they talk about and i have helped pass along many of the wife's tales as fact .

Helpful

Amazon Customer

This takes on all those mom things we are brought ...

Reviewed in the United States on April 18, 2017

Verified Purchase

This takes on all those mom things we are brought up with. It uses science to eliminate the real from the "do not do that" myths.

2 people found this helpful

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Jon Bunga Thera

Sobre mitos, modas y mentiras

Reviewed in Spain on August 10, 2019

Verified Purchase

Sencilla y amena explicación sobre mitos y falsas creencias relacionadas con la salud. Como se originaron, si tienen alguna base científica, que hay de cierto, etc. Por ejemplo, la moda de beber dos litros de agua al día, o la vitamina C o el zinc para el resfriado, que o no sirven para nada o directamente causan daño.

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Amazon Customer

one can believe something as hard and steadfast as one would like but the truth doesn't give a damn

Reviewed in Canada on September 12, 2015

Verified Purchase

Many people don't let the facts get in the way of their opinions. Yet, one can believe something as hard and steadfast as one would like but the truth doesn't give a damn. This book is filled with myth-busting sober facts.

Loweeve

Great facts

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 8, 2016

Verified Purchase

Great book full of myth busters, well worth a read

Kindle Customer

Well, I never knew that...

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 27, 2010

Verified Purchase

Great gift for Christmas when it is hard to think what to buy.
Surprising that lots of so called health 'knowledge' we grew up with is not actually true!
Could be grand gift for a hypochondriac, not that I had this in mind at the time.

L Moppett

Four Stars

Reviewed in Canada on December 29, 2017

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