When I was a teenager, a widespread belief held that dissolving an aspirin tablet in a glass of Coca-Cola would make a girl more likely to “put out.” It worked! At a party in 1954—the year I turned 13—while dancing to Little Things Mean a Lot by Kitty Kallen, Helene Clark kissed me. The aspirin in her soda had come straight from my parents’ medicine cabinet. 

Of course, it was a myth. That particular bit of folklore may trace back to the 1930s, when an Illinois physician wrote to the Journal of the American Medical Association warning that teenagers were dissolving aspirin in Coca-Cola to create an “intoxicating beverage.” 

No science supported the claim then, and none does now. But myths don’t need evidence to spread—just repetition and wishful thinking.

Health myths are nothing new. Some grow out of folklore and long-standing cultural beliefs about how the body works. Others—more troublingly—originate within the medical community itself. Many have been around for generations. They were wrong then, and they’re still wrong now.

Myths thrive on misunderstanding, misinterpretation, and incomplete knowledge. The consequences are not trivial. Health misinformation fuels unnecessary anxiety, delays appropriate care, and may lead to worse health outcomes—especially for older adults.

In 2026, health misinformation is less about ignorance and more about influence. Social media algorithms, charismatic influencers, and political manipulation often shape what people believe. The script is familiar: take a settled scientific question, reframe it as “still being debated,” invoke freedom or censorship, offer no new evidence, and then let doubt do the damage. This approach does not advance science. It erodes trust, delays care, and threatens our well-being.

Health Myths That Won’t Go Away (But Should)

MYTH: Cold weather causes colds.

FACT: Viruses cause colds—not cold air. We get sick more often in winter because we spend more time indoors, close together, with poor ventilation.

MYTH: Cracking your knuckles causes arthritis.

FACT: There is no evidence to support this—none. Arthritis results from joint wear, genetics, injury, and inflammation, not noise. Annoying habit? Yes. Dangerous? No.

MYTH: Detoxes and cleanses make you healthier.

FACT: Your body doesn’t need them, and they may do more harm than good. Detoxes are marketed as a way to “reset” the liver or flush toxins from the body. This is nonsense. Your liver and kidneys already do this continuously—and extremely well. The real prescription: eat a balanced, mostly plant-based diet, limit ultra-processed foods, and let your organs do their job.

MYTH: Food dropped on the floor is safe to eat if picked up within five seconds.

FACT: Bacteria transfer instantly. Wet foods are especially efficient germ magnets, and any surface can harbor pathogens. The “five-second rule” is an old urban legend—not a principle of modern microbiology.

MYTH: Getting older means getting weaker and dependent.

FACT: Functional decline is often preventable. Strength, balance, nutrition, purpose, and social connection matter far more than chronological age. Aging is not a diagnosis!

MYTH: If you’re overweight, it’s because you lack willpower.

FACT: Weight is influenced by biology, medications, sleep, stress, mobility, metabolism, and decades of poor nutritional education. Obesity is a treatable medical condition—not a moral failure.

“Settled Science” Myths Being Recycled in 2026—Welcome to the Era of RFK, Jr.

When leaders imply that vaccine safety is an “open question,” the public hears danger—even when the evidence says protection. These myths persist not because of new data, but because repeating them generates outrage, attention, and political leverage.

MYTH: Vaccine skepticism is “just asking questions.”

FACT: Asking questions is legitimate. Ignoring answers is not. When influencers or officials portray settled science as unsettled—without presenting new evidence—they blur the line between inquiry and misinformation. Polio wards, iron lungs, and measles epidemics did not disappear by accident.

MYTH: Vaccines are riskier for older adults.

FACT: Older adults benefit more, not less, from vaccines. Aging immune systems are weaker, making infections more dangerous. Vaccines dramatically reduce hospitalization, disability, and death. And no—the flu vaccine does not cause the flu!

MYTH: COVID vaccines cause sudden death or heart failure.

FACT: Large real-world studies involving millions of people show the opposite: vaccinated individuals live longer than unvaccinated ones. Side effects exist—as they do with all medical interventions—but serious complications from COVID itself are far more common and far more dangerous, especially for older adults.

MYTH: Rising autism rates are caused by vaccines.

FACT: Autism diagnoses increased because definitions broadened, screening improved, and services expanded. Some children once labeled “quirky,” “language delayed,” or “intellectually disabled” are now correctly identified as autistic.

MYTH: The MMR vaccine causes autism.

FACT: It does not. This question has been studied more thoroughly than almost any other in modern medicine—across decades, countries, and millions of children. The myth began with a fraudulent 1998 study that was later retracted; its author lost his medical license. The evidence since has been unequivocal.

MYTH: Measles is a mild childhood illness.

FACT: Measles is one of the most contagious viruses known. Before vaccination, it caused encephalitis, permanent disability, and thousands of deaths annually in the United States alone.

The Bottom Line

Myths are comforting. Facts require effort. But good health depends on choosing evidence over anecdotes, science over slogans, and truth over nostalgia.

Shot in the arm done/ No panel, no press release/ Just fewer funerals.