Vampires

Found this here. Surprised me a bit as its all real myth on a tv show website.

Stories about vampires have existed since ancient times, all across the globe, from Babylon to India, Egypt to China and Greece to Romania. Original tales woven about these children of the night stirred up images of demonic beasts who fed on newborns and women to survive — nothing like today's sexy vampires who seduce their prey and come across more as humans than vicious bloodsuckers.

Being Bitten Wasn't the Only Way In
According to superstitions before the 19th century, it wasn't all about getting chomped in the neck. Vampires supposedly rose from the bodies of dead people whose lives went awry in the following ways:

Genetics.
Your fate could have been doomed while still in the womb. If a pregnant woman crossed paths with a black cat or didn't eat salt, she would be risking the fate of her child to the underworld.(I've also heard the one about the seventh son of the seventh son)

Character traits.
If you were born premature, out of wedlock or with an extra nipple or extra hair (or even red hair), the villagers probably would peg you as something unnatural. After you died, they'd take care to watch your grave for signs of vampirism.

Diet.
Vegetarians, back in the day, you'd be safer. Those who dined on the meat of sheep that had been killed by wolves, on the other hand, were fated for fangs.

Bad luck.
If someone cursed you or suspected you of sorcery and black magic, you were likely to pop up out of the crypt. And speaking of crypts — if you didn't receive a proper burial, chances were you'd end up in a bloodthirsty state.

Before Angel and Lestat There Was…
Although vampires have long been popular fictional characters, there are historical figures who were noteworthy for possessing just as much bloodlust as the mythical creatures that kept villagers behind locked doors at night. Here are the top two:

The original Dracula.
The Romanian prince Vlad Dracula terrorized the Balkans in an effort to keep the area from the Turks in the 1400s. He was also known as Vlad the Impaler for the slow and agonizing way in which he killed between 40,000 and 100,000 victims: He impaled any man, woman or child who broke his strict moral code against lying, stealing or adultery. Though he was unusually cruel, Dracula was not known to drink the blood of his victims.

The Hungarian "Blood Countess."
Elizabeth Bathory actually did eat the flesh and drink and bathe in the blood of more than 650 young girls, thinking they were her own personal fountain of youth. But this lady "vampire," who lived from 1560 to 1614, didn't get caught until she stopped preying on peasant girls and started targeting young ladies of lesser nobility.

Forget the Garlic Around Your Neck
Want to keep a vampire busy so it can't chase you? Here are a few lesser known tips from the olden days:

Throw down some poppy seeds.
Who knew these bloodsuckers were obsessive-compulsive? By the rules of folklore, a vampire feels obliged to count every single poppy seed (or millet) before it can go on its dastardly way.

Spread tar around your window or door in the shape of a cross.
Some suspect that the reasoning behind this tradition was that the evildoer would get stuck while trying to sneak in. Unable to escape the sun in the morning, it would perish.

Go green.
Vampires avoid plants with healing or mystical properties, like aloe vera. Rumor had it that they had a distaste for wild rose and hawthorn too.

Think outside the box.
Bells ringing, holy symbols (besides crosses), rain, falling snow and fire have all been on the list of things that supposedly spook off vampires. (And if you're really desperate, eating dirt from their grave may do the trick too.)