“Old wives tales are beliefs lasting for many generations. For example, most of

“Old wives tales” are beliefs lasting formany generations. For example, most of us remember our parents’ telling us toeat more of certain foods or not to do certain things. Is there any truth inthese teachings? Some of them agree with present medical thinking, but othershave not passed the test of time.

Did your mother ever tell you to eat yourcarrots because they are good for your eyes? Scientists now report that eatingcarrots can help prevent a serious eye disease called macular degeneration.Eating just one carrot a day can reduce the possibility of getting this diseaseby 40%. Garlic is good for you, too. It can kill the type of virus that causescolds.

Unfortunately, not all of Mom’ s advicepassed the test of medical studies. For example, generations of children havebeen told not to go swimming within an hour after eating. But research suggeststhat there is no danger in doing so. Do sweets cause tooth problems? Well, yes.However, sticky sweets made with grains tend to cause more problems than sweetsmade with simple sugars.

Even though science can tell us that someof our traditional beliefs don’t hold water, there is still a lot of truth inthe old wives’ tales. After all, much of this knowledge has been accumulatedfrom thousands of years of experience in family health care. We should respectthis body of knowledge even as we search for clear scientific support to proveit true or false.

1.Which of the following is TRUE accordingto the test?

2. The phrase “hold water” in the lastparagraph most probably means”_____”.

3.What is the author’s attitude toward “oldwives tales” in the text?

试题答案

【答案】

1.B

2.A

3.B

【解析】略