9. How to avoid catching pink eye: stick out your tongue at the person with pink eye… works like magic! The truth behind this is that pink eye is very contagious. Adults used joke to children to stick out their tongue at people with pink eye to signal to them that “I don’t want to get close to you,” so that the person will keep their distance and not spread pink eye…so the next time you see someone who has pink eye… or seemingly has pink eye, the magic trick is to stick out your tongue, as mockingly as you can!