One of the oldest bromides is the saying “you learn something new every day”.

First, before the reveal, do you know what a “bromide” is, and where the phrase came from?

Potassium Bromide is a salt used as an anticonvulsant and sedative in the late 19th and early 20th century. It is rumored that during World War I, British soldiers were given Bromide to curb sexual desires. The salts were then later used as “sedative hypnotics”, a treatment characterized by lazy complacence and calmness. It was that practice which spawned the term “bromide” and gave it it’s colloquial meaning of “boring, comforting cliche”. PS It is okay to think of a “bromide” in a more negative sense. Everyone has a right to their own opinion. (See?)

I rushed through bromide stuff to get to the “new thing” learned today. As a father of two, grandfather to five, and friend to many other parents, the term “tongue tied” has always meant one thing: “someone is unable to speak clearly or freely, often due to shyness, embarrassment, or surprise”, per Merriam Webster.

But (drum roll for the new thing) tongue tied really comes from a form of tongue development noted in new borns where the “flap” under the tongue is too short. Go ahead, take a minute to feel under your tongue and find the stringy thing (the “lingual frenulum”) holding your tongue in your mouth. Got it? Babies are often born with a lingual frenulum too short or too tight, and it leads to a condition called “Tongue Tie, otherwise known as ankyloglossia”. If you’re a parent or soon to be parent, google this condition, if you don’t know about it already. Tongue Tie occurs in 5-10 percent of new born babies and appears to be hard to diagnose and treat, from some doctors perspectives. Tongue Tie’s main medical issue is it inhibits babies attempts to “latch on” to the breast for feeding.

The problem is it is not life threatening, so doctors are free to have their own opinions about diagnosing and treatment, or not. And they do, if you read internet stuff from reputable places. Some say it will cure itself and some say it needs to be fixed immediately, using a procedure know by two names: Frenotomy of Frenulotomy, tongue tiers in their own right.

I never knew a lick (get it?) about Tongue Tie until 9:37AM EST today, and rushed right here to share.

So. In my opinion, you do learn something new every day. From traffic lights to traffic circles, rotary phones to cell phones, we just roll with our new stuff and move on, as we have since the dawn of time.

Second Silly New Thing: baby boys are twice as likely to be born with Tongue Tie, no doubt as preparation for heart-to-heart conversations and marriage proposals.

BTW, my frenulum is perfect.