During the 1665 bubonic plague, Londoners desperately searched for ways to protect themselves. One popular remedy was a mixture of two small cloves of garlic with half a liter of fresh milk. People believed that drinking this odd cocktail on an empty stomach each morning would help prevent the disease.
Medical Myths: A Cross Between Fake News and Misleading Advertising
During the COVID-19 pandemic, many people turned to possible remedies and home treatments, often echoing those same old approaches. Although lab studies show garlic contains compounds with antimicrobial properties, using garlic to prevent bacterial or viral infections is largely folklore.
Folk remedies can seem harmless, but they can cause real harm. For example, an elderly woman suffered a chemical burn on her tongue from daily consumption of raw garlic.
ScienceAlert points out that folk medical advice often feels intuitively right. It usually comes from cultural beliefs and long-standing traditions. Folk remedies can include herbal medicines, dietary tips, and behavioral advice. That same folk wisdom can keep myths about disease causes and treatments alive, even as modern medicine advances.
For example, many people believe eating before swimming increases the risk of drowning, but there is no scientific support for that claim. Researchers have debunked the idea.
Folk wisdom often resembles misinformation, but it is not always outright false or deliberately deceptive. People can accept folk remedies and still trust mainstream medicine.
For instance, someone who believes in “starve a fever” might also support vaccination. Similarly, it’s not surprising that a person can follow official medical recommendations while also using folk remedies for treatment.
Don’t Underestimate How Dangerous Folk Remedies Can Be
The notion that folk wisdom is mostly harmless is misleading. The belief that drinking warm milk before bed helps you sleep may not cause harm, even if it isn’t true. But some folk beliefs can be dangerous.
Folk wisdom, like other forms of misinformation, often lacks scientific validation and spreads quickly on social media, posing a threat to public health. For example, in 2020 the number of child burn injuries from steam inhalation surged thirtyfold in the UK.
This spike was driven by folk advice circulating on social media that misled parents into thinking steam inhalation could prevent or treat respiratory problems. That is particularly troubling, since research dating back to 1969 warned about the dangers of the practice.
While some folk remedies have a degree of biological plausibility, others do not. Take the saying “an apple a day keeps the doctor away,” which dates to around 1870. That idea probably grew from the fact that apples contain nutrients. Scientists have found that apples aren’t exceptional sources of vitamins, but they do contain a range of bioactive compounds that support health.
Folk wisdom isn’t going away anytime soon. So understanding why people believe medical myths—and how those beliefs clash with scientific guidance—is essential. That understanding could help prevent harmful outcomes and, in some cases, save lives.
