Top 5 Misconceptions About Women's Health: Busted!

There are so many rumours floating around that make many women anxious about issues relating to their health. This scoop aims to bust some of the most popular women health myths there are.

Myth 1: Bras causes breast cancer

The Truth: Wearing a bra most certainly does not cause cancer. If you wish to reduce your chances of getting breast cancer, you must aim to eat a healthy diet, stay within a healthy weight range and avoid alcohol. Alcohol increases your chances of developing breast cancer. Getting a mammogram regularly (once every year) after you turn 45 is a proven way to detect breast cancer early and stop the spread.

Myth 2: Excruciating Period pain is normal

The Truth: Although mild discomfort is normal, the pain should not be debilitating. If the pain is intolerable, do consider calling your OBGYN to make an appointment to check if the pain has underlying causes like endometriosis or fibroids.

Myth 3: Cranberry juice cures UTIs

The Truth: While cranberry juice might taste delicious, (we’re sorry to burst your bubble) but they don't actually cure UTIs (i.e, any bacterial infection that causes burning urination and pelvis pain) If you do happen to get UTIs often, consider making an appointment with a gynaecologist who can prescribe antibiotics and suggest treatments to reduce your chances of getting them.

Myth 4: Your water has to break in order to be in active labor. 

The truth: All these movies have made us think of going into labour as a supremely dramatic event. In reality, about 10% of women have their membranes rupture before labor begins. It is (clearly) not a great indicator of whether you are in labor or not, so pregnant women should focus on the frequency of contractions instead. 

Myth 5:  You have to take a birth control pill at the same time every day.

The Truth: Your health provider/gynecologist probably tells you this so that you REMEMBER to take your pill. It is suggested solely for the purpose of preventing the event of missing your pill. But there's no real evidence to prove that this is medically necessary. 

This was one piece in our myth-busting series, stay tuned for a lot more!