Every family has its own health “rules” – don’t drink water with meals, certain foods cause cough, antibiotics must be stopped as soon as you feel better, and so on. Some of these tips are harmless or even useful; others can quietly cause harm.
The tricky part is that these beliefs are tied to respect for elders and tradition. Directly arguing can create friction. A gentler approach is to treat them as ideas worth checking rather than truths or lies.
You can say, “Dadi, maine suna hai aajkal doctors kya bolte hain iske baare me, chalo ek baar pooch lete hain,” and ask your doctor during a visit. Or you can look for reliable sources – not random forwards, but professional organisations and medical sites.
If a family rule clashes with modern advice, like misusing antibiotics or skipping vaccines, you can explain that knowledge has changed, and doctors see many patients where old habits caused problems. Sharing a doctor’s explanation in simple language often works better than arguing yourself.
Respecting elders doesn’t mean blindly following every health belief. Combining their experience with updated knowledge is usually the smartest path.