If you’re like me, you might have grown up with a few rules…especially in the summer.

One rule we’ll never forget - “You must wait at least one hour after eating before going into a pool of any kind.” Oh the agony we all suffered during that hour before our parents would give us that nod, allowing summer to continue in all its wet glory. Parents shuddered at the idea of even walking in the shallow end of the pool before our hour of torture was up. They all knew (and so diligently drilled into our heads) that even going into the shallowest of water less than one hour after eating could induce a cramp capable of sending us to a watery demise.

The good news: Our parents enforced this rule because they love us.

The bad news: None of it was true.

On a side note, my mother can stop calling me to remind me to wait an hour before I get back into the pool.