10 Urban Food Myths
By Joe Wilkes
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There have always been rumors spread about
food. Remember the one about the Kentucky Fried rat or Mikey, the kid from the
Life cereal commercials, who allegedly expired after washing down his Pop Rocks
with a Coca-Cola? These, like so many, turned out to be apocryphal, but now in
the age of the Internet, it seems like there's always some story making the
rounds about a grocery item that will poison you or a food that will
miraculously cure what ails you. Here are some myths we were able to
dismiss.
 Eating
carrots improves night vision. This rumor was apparently
started by the British during World War II, after a new British radar device
began greatly assisting in the shooting down of German bombers at night. Not
wanting to alert the Germans of the new technology, the government spread a
disinformation campaign about how the British pilots' love of carrots was the
cause of their keen night vision. It spread like wildfire, and it has become a
staple in parents' arsenals for getting kids to eat their veggies. Carrots are
generally good for your eyes though - studies are beginning to show a link
between increased beta-carotene (carrots are loaded with it) consumption and a
decrease in macular degeneration. Turkey
makes you sleepy. It's true that turkey contains
tryptophan, the amino acid credited for the poultry's alleged soporific
effects, but beef, chicken, meat, milk, and beans also contain tryptophan, and
they don't seem to make you pass out on the couch after dinner. Turkey's bad
rap probably comes from the famous post-Thanksgiving food coma, which is likely
not induced by trace amounts of an amino acid but more likely induced by
consuming vast quantities of carbohydrates, like potatoes and stuffing, washed
down with a couple of glasses of wine.
 Caesar
salad was created by or for Julius Caesar. Actually,
despite what they might tell you at the Olive Garden, the Caesar salad is not
Italian food. It was created by Caesar Cardini, a restaurant owner in Tijuana,
Mexico, less than a hundred years ago, not in ancient Rome. The recipe includes
romaine lettuce, olive oil, garlic, coddled eggs, and Parmesan cheese, among
other ingredients, but the original recipe does not contain
anchoviesâanother myth debunked!
 Mentos and Coca-Cola, combined, will make your stomach
explode. As any YouTube connoisseur can attest to,
dropping a Mentos candy into a two-liter bottle of Diet Coke can create an
effect that will give the fountains at the Bellagio a run for their money.
However, despite rumors of Brazilian youths dying of burst abdomens, this myth
seems to be another of the endless variations on Mikey and the Pop Rocks. There
seems to be little evidence that eating any combination of anything generally
considered edible will make you explode. (Although that Chinese food I had for
dinner came pretty close around midnight.)
 Beware
of flesh-eating bananas! There was an email forwarded by
many well-intentioned people not too long ago that asserted that the FDA was
covering up the fact that several thousand bananas covered in germs causing
necrotizing fasciitis (the flesh-eating disease) had entered the country. This
turned out not to be true. A reverse rumor, that humans were killing bananas,
has also circulated. This one says that due to varying explanations, such as
climate change or genetic modification, bananas will be extinct in less than a
decade. This is also false. So, eat your bananas. They're full of potassium,
won't make your skin fall off, and there are plenty more where they came
from.
 McDonald's uses kangaroo meat in their burgers. This is one that's been around since I was a kid. Common sense
can answer this one. While we wouldn't put it past the Golden Arches to put
anything in their food, kangaroo meat seems an unlikely beef substitute as it
costs much more per pound than actual beef. Although, adventurous eaters might
consider adding 'roo meat to their diet, as it has more protein and about half
the fat of beef.
 Chocolate milk is tainted with cow's blood.
This is a popular playground myth that milk too contaminated with blood to sell
as plain white milk is colored brown, flavored, and sold as chocolate milk.
Chocolate milk and all dairy products go through the same rigorous FDA testing
process that regular moo juice does. However, the added sugar isn't doing you
any favors.
- Aspartame causes
multiple sclerosis and lupus. Aspartame, often branded as
NutraSweet, has been rumored to cause many serious diseases. While we consider
the jury to be out on whether aspartame is completely safe, there have been no
reputable scientific studies linking the sweetener to MS, lupus, cancer, or any
other life-threatening illnesses. However, it still can't claim to be totally
healthy.
 Canola
oil is toxic. It's been rumored that canola oil contains
the same toxins found in mustard gas. Canola oil is made from oil pressed from
the seeds of the rape plant, a member of the mustard family. There is actually
no such plant as the canola, but it's easy to see the marketing problems that
would result in calling it "rape oil." This may have been one of the reasons
scurrilous rumors have circulated about this noble oil, which is perfectly safe
and rich in monounsaturated fat, the best fat, also found in olive oil and
avocados. As for the mustard gas claim, while it is true that canola oil is
made from mustard plants, mustard gas is not. It's called that because of its
acrid smell, not its ingredient list.
 Red Bull
causes brain tumors. As a favorite beverage of Britney
Spears and Paris Hilton, it's easy to make a case based on anecdotal evidence,
but there is actually nothing in Red Bull that has been linked to brain tumors.
It has been banned in some European countries because of its high caffeine
content (a can has about as much as a cup of coffee), but aside from the
typical health concerns regarding any sugary, caffeinated beverage, Red Bull
appears safe. Claims that it will give you wings seem unfounded, however, and
when mixed with vodka, it reportedly makes underpants
disappear.
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