6 Common Myths You May Still Believe

It's hard to tell fact from fiction these days. And some myths even stick with us our whole lives. Remember when you used to believe it took seven years to digest a piece of GUM? Here are six more common myths you might still buy into . . .

1. "Adding salt to water makes it boil faster." It actually takes longer to boil water with salt. But it's such a small difference anyway, it's hard to notice.

2. "Cracking your knuckles causes arthritis." No matter how many times your mom told you that one, scientists haven't found a link.

3. "Dropping a penny from a building can mortally injure someone." No, because it doesn't have enough mass. It would need to be going a lot faster.

4. "The sun is yellow." Nope, and it's not orange either. It's essentially all colors at once. So if you were in space, it would look white. Yellow and orange are the only wavelengths that get through the atmosphere and reach our eyes.

5. "Juice cleanses rid your body of toxins." There's no solid proof they "detoxify" anything. That's what your liver and kidneys are for.

6. "Your appendix is useless." For years, scientists said it was. But now they think it's home to "helpful bacteria" that fight off disease. And as kids, it helps us form antibodies and white blood cells.