Eight Glasses of Water and other Common Misconceptions

You probably didn't actually have this class on the first day in February, and if you're like me don't really have the time to read the whole page right now! But here is the 'relevant' information on food, nutrition, and cooking for you!

* Eight glasses of water a day are not necessary to maintain health. Consuming things that contain water such as juice, tea, milk, fruits and vegetables also keeps a person hydrated.
* Sugar does not cause hyperactivity in children. Double-blind trials have shown no difference in behavior between children given sugar-full or sugar-free diets, even in studies specifically looking at children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder or those considered sensitive to sugar. The difference in behaviour proved to be psychological.
* Alcohol does not make one warmer. The reason that alcoholic drinks create the sensation of warmth is that they cause blood vessels to dilate and stimulate nerve endings near the surface of the skin with an influx of warm blood. This can actually result in making the core body temperature lower, as it allows for easier heat exchange with a cold external environment.
* Alcohol does not kill brain cells. Early temperance writers promoted the idea that drinking causes brain cells to die (as well as the assertion that the alcohol in the blood stream could cause people to catch fire and burn alive). According to Queensland Brain Institute director Professor Perry Bartlett, there is no evidence that drinking alcohol leads directly to the death of brain cells. In fact, alcohol has positive health benefits when used moderately and new brain cells are generated on a daily basis. Alcohol can lead indirectly to the death of brain cells in chronic, heavy alcohol users whose brains have adapted to the effects of alcohol, where abrupt cessation following heavy use can cause excitotoxicity leading to cellular death in multiple areas of the brain.
* A vegetarian or vegan diet can provide enough protein. In fact, typical protein intakes of ovo-lacto vegetarians and of vegans meet and exceed requirements. While lower in protein than non-vegetarian diets, adequate but low protein diets have been shown to be beneficial against cancer. A non-vegetarian diet high in protein such as a typical diet in the United States in fact has been shown to be linked to several diseases including osteoporosis, cancer, impaired kidney function, and heart disease. However, a vegetarian or vegan diet is not a cure-all for all human disease, and a strict vegan diet does require supplementation of Vitamin B-12 for optimal health.
* Searing meat does not "seal in" moisture, and in fact may actually cause meat to lose moisture. Generally, the value in searing meat is that it creates a brown crust with a rich flavor via the Maillard reaction.
* Mussels that do not open when cooked may still be fully cooked and safe to eat.
* Some cooks believe that food items cooked with wine or liquor will be non-alcoholic, because alcohol's low boiling point causes it to evaporate quickly when heated. However, a study found that some of the alcohol remains: 25% after 1 hour of baking or simmering, and 10% after 2 hours.
* Sushi does not mean "raw fish", and not all sushi includes raw fish. The name sushi refers to the vinegared rice used in it. Sushi is made with sumeshi, rice which has been gently folded with rice vinegar, salt, and sugar dressing. The rice is traditionally topped by raw fish, cooked seafood, fish roe, egg, and/or vegetables such as cucumber, daikon radish, and avocado. The related Japanese term sashimi is closer in definition to "raw fish", but still not quite accurate: Sashimi can also refer to any uncooked meat or vegetable, and usually refers more to the dish's presentation than to its ingredients. The dish consisted of sushi rice and other fillings wrapped in seaweed is called makizushi, and includes both "long rolls" and "hand rolls".
* Microwave ovens do not cook food from the inside out. Microwave radiation penetrates food and causes direct heating only a short distance from the surface. This distance is called the skin depth. As an example, lean muscle tissue (meat) has a skin depth of only about 1 centimetre (0.39 in) at microwave oven frequencies
* Placing metal inside a microwave oven does not damage the oven's electronics. There are, however, other safety-related issues: electrical arcing may occur on pieces of metal not designed for use in a microwave oven, and metal objects may become hot enough to damage food, skin, or the interior of the microwave oven. Metallic objects that are designed for microwave use can be used in a microwave with no danger; examples include the metalized surfaces used in browning sleeves and pizza-cooking platforms.
* Swallowed chewing gum does not take seven years to digest. In fact, chewing gum is mostly indigestible, but passes through the digestive system at the same rate as other matter.

The food related misconceptions from the list of common misconceptions Wikipedia see full article for sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_common_misconceptions