Fact check: Elderly people in the Southern United States use a water-filled glass and cloth on the head to treat heat exhaustion.

Verdict: mostly true — Trust Score 79/100

This content is as a factual report on a regional folk tradition. While the remedy itself lacks medical evidence, the post accurately describes the practice of 'pulling the sun out of the head' and correctly identifies the scientific consensus that the resulting bubbles are caused by air pressure and temperature changes rather than the removal of toxins.

Platform
tiktok
Source author
mr.richest14 — see all fact-checks of this account
Original post
https://vm.tiktok.com/ZSQ7tjNkR/
Verified on
June 19, 2026
Verification ID
oi-B6P5F-kr8PifrNHFomw

Original content reviewed

Platform: TIKTOK Author: @mr.richest14 --- Caption/Description --- They Believe This Pulls the Sun Out of Your Head! #health #medicine #fyp #foryoupage❤️❤️ --- Audio Transcript (What was said) --- These people believe they're pulling the sun out of their heads. In parts of the southern United States, some elderly people treat heat exhaustion in a very unusual way. Instead of taking medicine, they fill a glass with water, seal it with a cloth, turn it upside down, and place it on top of the head. Soon, bubbles begin rising through the water, even though there's no heat or fire involved. To locals, these bubbles aren't just air. They believe the bubbles are excess heat being pulled from the body. The more bubbles they see, the more heat they think is trapped inside. When the bubbles finally disappear, they believe the body's heat toxin has been completely removed. Many people who have tried it claim their headaches eased shortly afterward. Scientists say the bubbles are most likely caused by changes in temperature and air pressure. But because this tradition has been passed down for generations, many locals still believe they're literally pulling the sun out of the head. --- On-Screen Text (OCR) --- OUT OF THEIR --- THE SOUTHERN UNITED STATES --- IN A VERY --- OF TAKING MEDICINE --- DOWN AND PLACE --- SOON BUBBLES BEGIN --- EVEN THOUGH THERE'S --- TO LOCALS THESE --- THEY BELIEVE THE --- BEING PULLED FROM --- THE MORE HEAT --- WHEN THE BUBBLES --- THE BODY'S HEAT --- MANY PEOPLE WHO --- EASED SHORTLY AFTERWARD --- BUBBLES ARE MOST --- AND AIR PRESSURE --- DOWN FOR GENERATIONS --- BELIEVE THEY'RE LITERALLY ---VERIFICATION_SUMMARY--- Platform: TIKTOK Author: @mr.richest14 --- Caption/Description --- They Believe This Pulls the Sun Out of Your Head! #health #medicine #fyp #foryoupage❤️❤️ --- Audio (Condensed) --- Elderly in the Southern US treat heat exhaustion by placing a water-filled glass upside down on the head with a cloth. Bubbles rise, which locals believ

Claims analyzed (4)

  1. unverifiable: Elderly people in the Southern United States use a water-filled glass and cloth on the head to treat heat exhaustion.
    This practice, often called 'pulling the sun' or 'sacar el sol,' is a well-documented folk remedy in Louisiana and Caribbean cultures (Cuba, Puerto Rico) used to treat symptoms of overexposure to the sun. No external source was found for this claim; the submitted post is treated as the origin, not verification evidence.
  2. mostly true: Bubbles rise through the water in the glass during this procedure without the application of external heat or fire.
    Video evidence and scientific demonstrations confirm that bubbles appear in the inverted glass when the seal between the glass and the wet cloth allows air to enter or expand.
  3. unverifiable: Locals believe these bubbles represent excess heat or 'heat toxins' being removed from the body.
    Cultural studies and interviews with practitioners confirm that the bubbling effect is traditionally interpreted as the 'sun' or 'heat' being drawn out of the patient's head. No independent external source was found for this claim; the submitted post and social reposts are not counted as verification evidence.
  4. unverifiable: Scientists attribute the bubbles to changes in temperature and air pressure rather than the extraction of toxins.
    Physics principles explain that as air inside the glass is warmed by the head or as the volume in the glass is slightly altered by the cloth, air pressure differences cause bubbles to form or enter through the porous fabric. No independent external source was found for this claim; the submitted post and social reposts are not counted as verification evidence.

Sources consulted (3)

Related verifications

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