Buzz
There are countless things that turned out to be more dangerous than we initially thought. Yet, some items once regarded as risky have proven to be completely safe.
1. Dancing
A safety dance? More like a deadly one. In 1926, The Washington Post published an article titled 'Death of Girl, 17, Laid to Charleston Dance.' It reported the tragic death of a young girl who allegedly died from dancing the Charleston. The girl's doctor blamed the cause on the 'extreme physical exercise' involved in this iconic dance, calling it 'especially dangerous for young women.'
The potential for 'inflammation of the peritoneum' wasn't the only concern when twirling on the dance floor. Even the most traditional dances could lead to significant harm and a range of undesirable consequences. Dr. Waldron, in 1925, told a local ministerial association, 'The high kick, displaying the bare legs and arms of our little girls in front of even small boys, cannot honestly be said to foster the highest sense of modesty, which is so highly valued in our women.' His remarks were quoted in The Pittsburgh Courier article 'Flays Teaching of Dancing in Public School: ‘Display of Bare Legs is Hurtful.’” Dr. Waldron further warned, 'Folk dances are the gateway to dance schools, which feed into dance halls and public ballrooms, ultimately leading to brothels.' He claimed that statistics showed up to two-thirds of prostitutes in large cities come from these dance venues.
While today few worry about dancing causing death, certain dance styles still carry associations with promiscuity. Some schools enforce strict rules about the distance between partners at school dances, while other towns have taken it further, outlawing dancing entirely—sometimes for religious reasons, sometimes due to concerns over nightclub crime rates, and in one Wisconsin town, even as part of a brief promotional stunt. In any case, dancing still remains a controversial subject in some places.
2. Competitive Sports (for Girls)
In the 1920s, it was believed that girls should avoid competitive sports if they wanted to remain attractive and secure a marriage. A headmistress from Victoria College warned in 1922's The Washington Post article, 'Too many athletics threaten to rob girls of their chief appeal to men.' She added, 'The modern girl is trying to do too much at football. Her charm, balance, and poise will all be lost, and her dignity lowered if she tries to emulate men too closely.'
Even worse, participating in high school sports could result in physical exhaustion, potentially ruining a girl’s future happiness. A married woman reflected in the 1931 Chicago Daily Tribune article 'Competitive Sports are Dangerous for High School Girls,' 'Must I continue through my life half enjoying living just because I gave too much of myself to competitive sports, to win a few medals which lie unnoticed and tarnished in a box?'
It wasn't until World War II that women's participation in competitive sports became more widely accepted. As women demonstrated their strength by entering the workforce or serving in the military, 'organizations for women in sport began to grow' as competition became more intense, and intercollegiate and interscholastic contests spread. The Civil Rights movement, alongside Second Wave feminism, also played a crucial role in the rise of women's competitive sports.
3. Licking Stamps
Back in 1916, when traditional mail was the primary mode of communication and stamps were still lickable instead of sticky, The New York Times issued a warning about the dangers of licking stamps. The scientists from Philadelphia who conducted the study explained, 'Aside from hygiene concerns, it is dangerous to lick postage stamps because they are often contaminated with bacteria, which under the right conditions could easily transfer harmful pathogens such as those causing colon infections, diphtheria, and tuberculosis.'
Just four years later, J. Diner and G. Horstman—members of the American Pharmaceutical Association—debunked this claim. A 1920 article in The Boston Daily Globe cited a study first published in American Medicine, stating, 'The hygienic reasons for not licking postage stamps are valid. However, this practice hardly presents a real danger when compared to the bacteriological contamination from eating and drinking, which are vital for survival but contribute significantly to oral bacteria.'
On a related note, Seinfeld fans might wonder if Susan's death from licking wedding invitation envelopes could actually happen. According to Thomas P. Connelly, D.D.S., the answer is no. He clarified in a 2011 Huffington Post article, 'Most envelope glue is made from gum arabic, which is derived from tree sap. It’s safe for humans and even used in edible items like M&Ms and gumdrops. Some glues are petroleum-based, like the kind used by the UK postal service, but either way, the glue is safe. It's harmless if ingested or even if you accidentally cut your tongue while licking.'
4. The Color Purple
In the early 1900s, an interior designer would have never considered choosing the color purple. A 1903 Boston Globe article titled 'Dangerous Tints: Some Colors Will Drive a Person Mad if the Eyes Are Continually Looking at Them' declared it to be 'the most dangerous color there is.'
The article warned, 'If you were surrounded by purple walls and a red-tinted window for a month, with nothing but purple in sight, by the end of that time, you would have lost your sanity. No matter how strong your mind is, it wouldn't withstand the strain, and it's unlikely you'd ever regain your reason.'
It wasn't just purple to avoid. Scarlet was said to provoke murderous rage, while blue 'stimulates the imagination and fosters a craving for music and theater, but it has a detrimental effect on the nerves.' Meanwhile, 'Solitary confinement in a yellow cell would weaken anyone's health and induce chronic hysteria,' and 'pure white, without variation, will ruin your eyesight.'
However, color expert Kate Smith suggests that purple can actually soothe nerves, elevate mood, and spark creativity. After all, why else would Harold choose a purple crayon?
5. Dungeons and Dragons
Dungeons and Dragons (D&D) faced heavy criticism in the 1980s when some suicides and murders were loosely linked to the game. A few years ago, Mental_Floss compiled a list of concerns about the fantasy role-playing game, which included accusations involving cults, witchcraft, Satan, and murder.
One mother expressed alarm over the excessive time and energy her children and their friends spent on the game, stating, 'They're always planning what they will do next. Kids have lost jobs, flunked out of school. They totally confuse reality and fantasy. It (the game) becomes their god.'
6. Hanging onto Straps on Public Transportation
In 1912, women feeling unwell could blame public transportation, not because of germs on the poles or the crowded streetcars, but because holding onto the straps—now replaced with rods—was 'a frightful strain upon [your] internal organs,' according to a prominent but unnamed physician interviewed in the Chicago Daily Tribune’s article 'Strap Hanging Dangerous for Women.' The physician noted, 'Women do not have the strong shoulder muscles that men possess, and while men use only their arm and shoulder muscles to steady themselves, women must rely on all the muscles in their bodies for the same purpose.'
Lillian Russell, the author of the piece, even turned it into a political matter, stating, 'It is high time that women were granted the rights of suffrage, for without suffrage they have neither seats in the cars nor the votes to protect themselves against such a horde of so-called men.'
While hanging onto straps may no longer be considered hazardous for women, seating arrangements on public transportation remain a debated and gendered topic. At least there are taxis available.
7. Where's Waldo? and other children's books
It’s not easy to find Waldo among the packed pages of a Where’s Waldo? book, much less spot every detail tucked into the illustrations. However, in Long Island, one child found a woman’s partially exposed breast on the beach page in the first book of the series, sparking a backlash from concerned parents. The breast, described as 'about the size of the lead tip of a pencil,' led to the book being banned from the school library in 1993. Other children's books that have faced similar fates include A. A. Milne’s Winnie the Pooh, William Steig’s Sylvester and the Magic Pebble, and—due to an unfortunate mix-up—Bill Martin Jr.’s Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?
8. Gum
You may have been told by your mother never to swallow your gum because it would stick in your stomach for seven years. While this might have been a way to discourage a child from keeping chewed gum, it’s a completely false claim. Gum doesn’t break down like other food, but it still passes through your digestive system at a normal rate. Despite this, it’s still not a great idea to swallow it.
9. Sitting Too Close to the TV
In the days before flat screens, hundreds of channels, and crystal-clear images, televisions were bulky and emitted radiation that could potentially harm your eyesight with prolonged exposure. However, in 1967, a 'factory error' caused certain General Electric TVs to release up to 100,000 times the acceptable level of radiation. GE recalled those models and introduced new ones featuring a leaded glass shield to address the issue.
Radiation is no longer a concern, but you can still strain your eyes if you spend too much time staring at screens. With our iPhones, computers, and other devices, TV is now the least of our worries.
10. The Tomato
If paired with the wrong dish, a tomato could be deadly. In the past, European aristocrats who fell ill and died after eating tomatoes were the reason the fruit became known as the 'poison apple.' It was later found that the tomato itself wasn’t dangerous, but its high acidity caused it to leach lead from pewter plates, leading to lead poisoning. Despite this discovery, the tomato’s bad reputation stuck.
The tomato’s reputation continued to suffer when the Green Tomato Worm invaded New York’s tomato patches in the 1830s. Reports of these worms sparked rumors about their toxicity. It was believed that Ralph Waldo Emerson thought the worms were 'an object of much terror, it being currently regarded as poisonous and imparting a poisonous quality to the fruit if it should chance to crawl upon it.' The worm was eventually proven harmless, people’s fears faded, and the tomato became a mainstay in gardens and salads.
11. Tea
In 19th-century Ireland, if a peasant woman was drinking tea, it often meant that something more important—like her household duties—was being neglected. Dr. Helen O'Connell, a lecturer at Durham University and author of 'A Raking Pot of Tea: Consumption and Excess in Early Nineteenth Century Ireland,' published in the Literature and History journal, explained that drinking tea was considered a threat to traditional ways. Women’s tea breaks were feared to lead to political discussion or even rebellion, with pamphlets warning of the dangers of the drink. Today, tea is just seen as a pleasant alternative to coffee, which at one time was also considered dangerous.
12. Clothes
In 1901, the authors of a Boston Daily Globe article titled 'Don’t Wear Clothes: That is, if You Would be Entirely Healthy...' claimed that 'If the doctors are to be believed, the wearing of clothes is more dangerous to human life than their utter absence would be.' British doctors consulted for the piece warned against wearing cotton and linen, as well as items like garters and waistcoats, which they considered 'a permanent menace to life and health.'
The reasoning behind this advice has some merit—the body does breathe through both the lungs and the skin (despite the many misleading internet myths), and certain fabrics are less breathable than others. However, the idea that 'nonporous clothing' is as catastrophic as they suggested seems exaggerated.
Today, we know that cotton is one of the best fabric choices available, while some synthetic materials can cause skin rashes and irritation. However, there have been more recent concerns regarding the safety of some clothes—not due to 'clammy surfaces' causing illnesses like pneumonia, but because some dyes in clothing are toxic, stemming from pollution in water sources near factories [PDF].
13. Writing Letters
Long before the rise of social media oversharing, in 1898, Amelia E. Barr highlighted a chapter titled 'Dangerous Letter Writing' in her book Maids Wives and Bachelors, where she said, 'Young women are proverbially fond of playing with edged tools... And of all such dangerous playthings, a habit of promiscuous, careless letter-writing is the worst; for in most cases, the danger is not obvious at the time, and the writer may even have forgotten her imprudence when she has to meet the consequences.' Barr attributed this reckless behavior to the introduction of cheaper postage, which made it easier for girls to impulsively send overly sentimental letters without thinking of the consequences.
In an astoundingly prophetic statement, she writes,
The misuse of letter-writing is one of the greatest afflictions of the age... Everyone demands your attention, insisting you listen. They document events while they're still unfolding. Strangers encroach upon your time, taking control of it. Disputes and alliances from faraway places scold or affectionately flatter you... For something as trivial as a yes or no, chatty and excitable people send constant letters, urging a response.
Although letter writing may no longer be viewed as hazardous, in the age of mobile phones, computers, and other communication devices, it undeniably remains a persistent annoyance.
14. Public Toilets
Are you a toilet hoverer, or do you prefer to use a toilet seat cover? There's hardly any need for all that extra effort when using a public restroom, because despite popular belief, you cannot contract a sexually transmitted disease simply by sitting on a toilet seat.
Donald G. McNeil Jr., a science and health reporter for The New York Times, traces the origin of the fear of catching a venereal disease from a toilet seat to an age-old excuse. In response to a reader's inquiry about the dangers of toilet seats, he suggested that the STD myth likely emerged from unfaithful partners who, when confronted by their partners about symptoms of syphilis, gonorrhea, pubic lice, or other unpleasant conditions, would deny their infidelity. Rather than admit their wrongdoing, the guilty party could easily say, “I have no idea, dear—I must have contracted it from a toilet seat...” and escape without further argument.
Diseases that aren't sexually transmitted, like flesh-eating bacteria, norovirus, or E. Coli, are spread through vomit or feces, both of which are visible and can therefore be avoided. As for other germs, as long as the skin on your thighs and rear end is intact—thick skin acts as a natural barrier—there's almost no cause for concern.
While toilet seats may indeed carry germs—about 50 bacteria per square inch on average—it's worth noting that they are actually cleaner than items like a cutting board, a kitchen sponge, or even your cell phone. So, the next time you place your iPhone next to your pillow, consider this.
15. Air Conditioning
The introduction and widespread availability of air conditioning during the 1920s and '30s brought immense relief to homeowners and office workers tired of enduring the summer heat. However, not everyone welcomed this new comfort. In May 1929, John E. Rankin, a Democrat from Mississippi, filed a complaint about the chilly air in the Senate chamber, remarking, 'This is regular Republican atmosphere, and it is enough to kill anybody if it continues.'
Rankin's concerns were unfounded. In fact, a 2013 study found that air conditioning has reduced heat-related fatalities by 80 percent since 1960. 'The chance of dying prematurely on an extremely hot day between 1929 and 1959 was 2.5 percent,' but it has now fallen to less than 0.5 percent.
