Onions

[Paul G]

This article was sent by a friend. Snopes says it is false, but???




Wow- very interesting.... ONIONS! I had never heard this!!! PLEASE READ TO THE END: IMPORTANT In 1919 when the flu killed 40 million people there was this Doctor that visited the many farmers to see if he could help them combat the flu... Many of the farmers and their families had contracted it and many died. The doctor came upon this one farmer and to his surprise, everyone was very healthy. When the doctor asked what the farmer was doing that was different the wife replied that she had placed an unpeeled onion in a dish in the rooms of the home, (probably only two rooms back then). The doctor couldn't believe it and asked if he could have one of the onions and place it under the microscope. She gave him one and when he did this, he did find the flu virus in the onion. It obviously absorbed the bacteria, therefore, keeping the family healthy. Now, I heard this story from my hairdresser. She said that several years ago, many of her employees were coming down with the flu, and so were many of her customers. The next year she placed several bowls with onions around in her shop. To her surprise, none of her staff got sick. It must work. Try it and see what happens. We did it last year and we never got the flu. Now there is a P. S. to this for I sent it to a friend in Oregon who regularly contributes material to me on health issues. She replied with this most interesting experience about onions: Thanks for the reminder. I don't know about the farmer's story...but, I do know that I contacted pneumonia, and, needless to say, I was very ill... I came across an article that said to cut both ends off an onion put it into an empty jar, and place the jar next to the sick patient at night. It said the onion would be black in the morning from the germs...sure enough it happened just like that...the onion was a mess and I began to feel better. Another thing I read in the article was that onions and garlic placed around the room saved many from the black plague years ago. They have powerful antibacterial, antiseptic properties. This is the other note. Lots of times when we have stomach problems we don't know what to blame. Maybe it's the onions that are to blame. Onions absorb bacteria is the reason they are so good at preventing us from getting colds and flu and is the very reason we shouldn't eat an onion that has been sitting for a time after it has been cut open. LEFT OVER ONIONS ARE POISONOUS I had the wonderful privilege of touring Mullins Food Products, Makers of mayonnaise. Questions about food poisoning came up, and I wanted to share what I learned from a chemist. Ed, who was our tour guide, is a food chemistry whiz. During the tour, someone asked if we really needed to worry about mayonnaise. People are always worried that mayonnaise will spoil. Ed's answer will surprise you. Ed said that all commercially-made mayo is completely safe. "It doesn't even have to be refrigerated. No harm in refrigerating it, but it's not really necessary." He explained that the pH in mayonnaise is set at a point that bacteria could not survive in that environment. He then talked about the summer picnic, with the bowl of potato salad sitting on the table, and how everyone blames the mayonnaise when someone gets sick. Ed says that, when food poisoning is reported, the first thing the officials look for is when the 'victim' last ate ONIONS and where those onions came from (in the potato salad?). Ed says it's not the mayonnaise (as long as it's not homemade mayo) that spoils in the outdoors. It's probably the ONIONS, and if not the onions, it's the POTATOES. He explained onions are a huge magnet for bacteria, especially uncooked onions. You should never plan to keep a portion of a sliced onion.. He says it's not even safe if you put it in a zip-lock bag and put it in your refrigerator. It's already contaminated enough just by being cut open and out for a bit, that it can be a danger to you (and doubly watch out for those onions you put in your hotdogs at the baseball park!). Ed says if you take the leftover onion and cook it like crazy you'll probably be okay, but if you slice that leftover onion and put on your sandwich, you're asking for trouble. Both the onions and the moist potato in a potato salad, will attract and grow bacteria faster than any commercial mayonnaise will even begin to break down. Also, dogs should never eat onions. Their stomachs cannot metabolize onions. Please remember it is dangerous to cut an onion and try to use it to cook the next day, it becomes highly poisonous for even a single night and creates toxic bacteria which may cause adverse stomach infections because of excess bile secretions and even food poisoning. Please pass this on to all you love and care about.

[charge69]

Snopes is right!  FALSE !   My wife is a webfoot Cajun and uses onion in just about everything she cooks. I cannot tell you how many times an onion-half has been left out for a few hours and then put in a ziplock bag to go in the fridge overnight and used the next day for something else.  Never seen an onion turn "black" from bacteria and never got sick from eating them either!

Onions, bell pepper and celery are the "trinity" of Cajun cooking and one heck of a lot of all three are used around here. Gumbo, etoufee, courtbullion, etc. are all cooked around here and the first thing my wife does is cut up and start by cooking at least one onion, usually more, in the pan then adding the other ingredients.

I had read this article a while back and was intrigued by what he said.  I even cut an onion and left it on a tray overnight to see if I could see the bacteria he speaks of growing for myself. Guess what .... no bacteria could be seen.

Potatoes ....... I don't know but I do know my late mother-in-law (also a webfoot cajun with the last name of Thibodeaux) could not eat potato salad that was over a day old or she would get sick! Not sure what made her sick but she said it was the mayonnaise. Myself, I don't think it was the mayonnaise but, who knows.

[ws23rt]

Stuff like this always makes me

So an onion is sitting in a dish next to some one that is sick.----The bugs that are making this person sick hear about it and decide to make the leap to the onion.

By doing so they leave a perfectly good host with much to feed on and take up residence on the onion

Some of the bacteria are in the air of course and will land on anything but to imply that the majority will abandon the host is just silly.

We all want to find easy cures and have found many but to continue to believe in things that are not so is no help other than the placebo affect.

I remember hearing of a person in a health food store walking the isles for some time when the clerk asked what they were looking for. 

The response was--I see placebo as an ingredient in some supplements and want to get just the pure thing.  And by the way how much would you say one needs each day for good health?

[polywideblock]

both my grand father and father if they had a cold , used to  slice up an onion and put in a glass covered with water then drink concoction in the morning  they swore by it  tasted like crap never could do it

[Alaskan_TA]

Music! We need music! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KM-lEhhsLQw

[XH29N0G]

Nice song. 

When I was 16, my grandfather told me do not give an onion sandwich to a girl on the first date  if she says 'just get me what you normally get'.  My grandmother laughed and agreed - she was the one who got the onion sandwich.  I think it was a sign of the times; if I have my math right, I think it was around 1930-32.    They lived into their late 80's.

By the way, I think it is true that there are more cells by number (not weight) in our bodies that are bacteria than there are that are human.  Sometimes when I am sick, I wonder if it is not those little guys who are sick instead, but I wonder how they are so effective at letting me know.

[Dino]

Nice song. 

When I was 16, my grandfather told me do not give an onion sandwich to a girl on the first date  if she says 'just get me what you normally get'.  My grandmother laughed and agreed - she was the one who got the onion sandwich.  I think it was a sign of the times; if I have my math right, I think it was around 1930-32.    They lived into their late 80's.

By the way, I think it is true that there are more cells by number (not weight) in our bodies that are bacteria than there are that are human.  Sometimes when I am sick, I wonder if it is not those little guys who are sick instead, but I wonder how they are so effective at letting me know.

Don't forget we need most of those bacteria to live.  Take them out and you'll drop like a stone.

Think about this one.  Go into your back yard and grab a hand full of soil (if it's not frozen).  There is more bacterial life in that little heap than all the humans that ever walked the planet combined.

Freaky?  Think about this one:  this is also true for your skin and it is also true for your mouth.  Yeah...   

Don't think bacteria are all bad, we wouldn't be here without them.

[cavemanno1]

Stepdaughter just got a cold and told the wife to put some onion in her room see if it is working!

[Ram07]

seems silly

[ws23rt]

Nice song. 

When I was 16, my grandfather told me do not give an onion sandwich to a girl on the first date  if she says 'just get me what you normally get'.  My grandmother laughed and agreed - she was the one who got the onion sandwich.  I think it was a sign of the times; if I have my math right, I think it was around 1930-32.    They lived into their late 80's.

By the way, I think it is true that there are more cells by number (not weight) in our bodies that are bacteria than there are that are human.  Sometimes when I am sick, I wonder if it is not those little guys who are sick instead, but I wonder how they are so effective at letting me know.

Don't forget we need most of those bacteria to live.  Take them out and you'll drop like a stone.

Think about this one.  Go into your back yard and grab a hand full of soil (if it's not frozen).  There is more bacterial life in that little heap than all the humans that ever walked the planet combined.

Freaky?  Think about this one:  this is also true for your skin and it is also true for your mouth.  Yeah...   

Don't think bacteria are all bad, we wouldn't be here without them.

This is so true.

When a strong antibiotic is prescribed it should not be taken lightly..They can kill much that we don't want them to. And getting back whole again takes time.

I recall an exterminator making an observation that the presents of spiders in the attic is a good sign that the house has not been nuked. If nothing can live than what are we doing in that house