The world is going digital, technology is getting advanced, and people are getting more knowledge on daily basis but yet superstition had refused to stop. Since when I was a toddler, to teenager and now an adult, I still keep hearing same thing. Same message has been conveyed to the younger ones of today too like in my tender age days. But, how long would this continue despite the level of education we have today? What really baffles me most is hearing same things from the so called educated ones, and then I would be like..."what are we thinking"? "How could these be possible?"
Though, superstition is a belief or a word said that has no scientific knowledge in it which some believe may influence one future or present, negatively or positively.
Don't really know if this is believed in other regions too but the only place I know that it's so common is my dear country Nigeria. Commonly accepted in the Southern, Eastern and Western part of Nigeria but don't really know much about the Northern part of the country because I haven't lived there once.
To every readers of this article, I want us to check the extent on how these listed below are true even without scientific knowledge.
Drinking Coconut Water Will Make You A Dullard
Now, I'm a graduate. B.Sc in Food Science and Technology. Checking the nutritional components we have in coconut water, I got this below...
Nutritional Value Of Coconut Water
Before going there, it's a general saying that ignorance is darkness and knowledge is light. When you know something, you know because of knowledge passed to you, when you don't, you definitely don't because of ignorance. That's life! Education Is The Key!
In just a glass cup of coconut water, we have carbohydrates (dietary fibres and sugars), protein ( alanine acid, aspertic acid, tryptophan, lysine, isoleusine, valine, tyrosine e.t.c), minerals (magnesium, iron, zinc, calcium, phosphorus, sodium, copper etc) fat (saturated, monountarurated and polyunsaturated), vitamins (niacin B-3, vitamin B-6, vitamin C, riboflavin B-2, thiamin B-1 ,etc), and then water which is the large part of it. Water takes 95% and the other constituents made up the remaining 5%.Source
Furthermore, according to live strong health article, we have this below about coconut water.
One cup of coconut water contains 46 calories. Carbohydrates make up the majority of the calorie content, with 8.9 grams per 1-cup serving, of which 6.26 grams are from sugar. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, you need to consume 28 grams of fiber per day, based on a typical 2,000-calorie diet. Coconut water offers 2.6 grams, or 9.3 percent of your daily needs for fiber. Coconut water contains 1.78 grams of protein and less than 1 gram of total fat.Source
I have really missed the nutritional contents of this water for very long time. However, there is a precaution for taken it. At least a glass cup is enough for a day. Not advisable to be taken in excess.
One presumed factor arising from excessive consumption of coconut water is an over-abundance of potassium in the blood (hyperkalemia), inducing acute kidney failure, heart arrhythmia, loss of consciousness and eventually death.Source
With all these information about coconut water, and what it does to our body system, I think the belief for this word should be abolish. I consider the statement invalid.
Killing Of Wall Geckoes Makes One Barren
Wall geckoes also called house lizard has been a disturbance to many homes in Nigeria. Some like it while some doesn't. Of course not everyone will like same thing. But what I know is that the level of hatred to this animal, is more than its likeness among people in my region. Most people kill it because they often show up at night especially when light is switched on. But a word has been flying around for so many years about this lizard. Since I was very young, I have heard this...if you kill a wall gecko, you won't have children. But then, is not that I believe or didn't believe but the word just always keep coming anytime I see a wall gecko.
But later on, I realised that the word was just a fallacy. Maybe the word was just said to decrease the level of killing of these geckoes in order not to go extinction. I have seen men that hate geckoes with passion that kills them and have lots of children and besides, their is no correlation between a man sperm fertilizing a egg with wall geckoes. It even sound absurd.
Hitting A Man With A Broom Renders Him Impotent
When I was a teenager, if someone should joke with me with a broom, I would be begging him/her not to try it. If the person keeps threatening me (joking manner but going harder) with the broom, I would run away because I consider my penile very important than any other thing in the world except God.
I so much believe in that word then due to my little memory and understanding, that was why I was always frighten if someone should get closer to me with a broom. But now, eyes are opened, the brain is sharpened, coupled with knowledge and encapsulated with lot of facts and understanding.
What has broom got to do with a man semen or sperm? Absolutely nothing. Till now, some still believe in this. And meanwhile, I have seen someone been beaten severally with a broom when he was a teenager but now being a father. What do we say about this? Let's stop believing all these frighten words by our forefathers.
Whistling In A Scorching Sun Or At Night, Invites Snakes And Evil Spirits.
I could remember when I was in my teen age, I always try to do this during the day when there was a very hot weather, but the elderly ones would stop me. Some will tell me, it's not good, while some we say it's a taboo. I might have forgotten that have been forewarned, then i would try it o do it again but would result to spanking or yelling at me.
Later on, when have had more knowledge, I thought within me, thinking about the connection between a whistle and a snake, but it was unfortunate, I couldn't find any. Then I was like, what's always going on with our grandparents? Why would they keep telling us fallacies?
Though, there is a belief in the United kingdom according to Wikipedia, but don't really know if it's still believed till date. It says...
In many cultures, whistling or making whistling noises at night is thought to attract bad luck, bad things, or evil spirits. In the UK there is a superstitious belief in the "Seven Whistlers" which are seven mysterious birds or spirits who call out to foretell death or a great calamity.Source
I could remember when I went for National Youth Service, the orientation camp we used was in control by military forces. Whistles were blown countless times, I couldn't see any snake come out despite the camp location is situated in a thick forest. In the morning, afternoon and evening, whistles were blown. The whistle blown is to signify every activities meant to be done at that particular time. Despite all the whistle blowing, no snake has been recorded to have entered the camp from the thick bushes.
With all these to say, I consider the statement invalid for inviting snakes, but for inviting evil spirits, I don't really believe but to them that does it might only happen to them.
Spitting On A Floor Or Ground And Someone Steps On It, One Will Develop Throat Ache
I could remember back then, if I should mistakenly do this on a floor or ground, on the motion that I was, if i remember this statement, I would pause, make a u-turn, go back there and clean it myself with my foot. Getting afraid of the consequence they said. But, what does study say about throat ache? Let's check this out...
According to mayo clinic...
The most common cause of a sore throat (pharyngitis) is a viral infection, such as a cold or the flu. A sore throat caused by a virus resolves on its own. Strep throat (streptococcal infection), a less common type of sore throat caused by bacteria, requires treatment with antibiotics to prevent complications.Source
Now, if this is really true, it sounds as if, if we spit on ground, stepping on it by another person would invite deity to come place bacteria in our throat I guess? Sounds ridiculous! Don't think the statement is true because I have spat on the floor, ground, pedestrian walkway severally and nothing happened to me. Therefore, I consider this statement invalid.
Talking While Defeathering Chicken Makes Feather Grows More On Carcass
When I was little, I have seen my aunties, uncles defeathered many chickens, then, their is always a total silence in the kitchen, if I just burst in and try to talk, they would say shut up! and i would be like what?. They would tell me the statement above. Then, I would be like wow! How possible? Is that a magic? No response from them because there was no proof to back it up. They only believed because that was what they were told when they were young like me by our grandparents.
Later in life, I thought about it. Then I remembered a statement which says "there will always be a reason for something", but how about if I try to figure out the reason behind this, that would be a good idea.
So now that I'm in my own apartment, I have tried to defeather chicken severally with lots of talking while doing it. Is either i sing or soliloquize. But my chicken carcass is as clean as If i used a defeathering machine after lots of talking.
Therefore, as for me, i consider this statement invalid. I don't know if it has happened to you before. If yes, you can use the comments section below.
Another superstition that was never true is:
Eating Okra Makes One Life Go Backward
When a friend of mine told me this, I was like what did you say? He said "yes, I'm saying the truth". I asked why? Do we have enemy of progress in okra?(thought within me)He didn't reply. Later on, he further added that him and his family are not eating it. Then I thought within me who knows if you and your family has phobia for okra?
In a general term, that's an invalid statement for okra. If we should check the nutritional values of okra, we have abundant of vitamins and minerals. Also with carbohydrates and proteins which are very essential in daily dietary.Source
This is a false statement. The nutritional components of okra are so essential to the body system. I have seen several people including myself eating okra and our lives is progressing by the grace of God.
If You Eat With A Knife, You Teeth Alignment Would Be Scattered
Basically at first, it's wrong to use a knife to eat, and that's why we have spoons, chopping sticks, meat picker and so on. The basic function of a knife among cutleries for the food dished is to cut or slice and not to be used as spoon for ingestion.
However, this does not rank knife forbidden not to be used for food into the mouth. I have tasted so many foods, fruits severally with the usage of knives and my teeth are still perfectly aligned in my buccal cavity. It's not advisable tho, I was just always lazy to lay my hands on a spoon back then.
Sweeping Indoor At Night And Throwing Away Its Dust, Hinders One Blessings For That Day.
When I was young, I lived with an old woman, whenever I sweep the living room and bedroom at night, if I try to put away the dust she would say NO, drop it one corner and dispose it the next morning I asked, mama why? She told me the statement above. I wasn't thinking about it then because I was young, but now, I always find more reasons behind this. Up til now, no back up to proof where this statement originated from. At least knowing the source of this statement might somehow convince me.
What I really know is that, if you aren't lazy, blessings will follow you, but if you are, you may be poor because it's even written in the Bible that hands that doesn't work, shouldn't eat.Source If you don't work and also didn't do the statement above, how would the blessing come? Wealth come from real hard work, determination + God's grace and not from fallacies that never existed.
CONCLUSION
All these superstitions listed here are considered an invalid statements to them that never believed like me. I can't believe those fallacies because they have no backups or source in them. In life, things don't just happen, there must be a reason for it. But, to them that believe little or part of these statements, it might happen to them because believing on something is very powerful. Things can happen to someone according to his/her faith in that particular thing.
If you have experienced reality or have facts on these 9 statements, you can make use of the comment section and let's see how real these statements are. Thank you!
Thank You For Your Precious Time
References
- https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gecko
- https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/sore-throat/symptoms-causes/syc-20351635
- https://www.livestrong.com/article/266858-the-nutritional-value-of-coconut-water/
- https://biblehub.com/2_thessalonians/3-10.htm
- https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whistling
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