slb@drutx.UUCP (Sue Brezden) (04/10/85)
I have a question which may or may not belong in net.cooks,
but since this discussion of onion and garlic started here,
who am I to remove it?
Why are some people affected by the onion smell more than
others? It seems like H2SO4 would have a similar action
on everyone. But I know that my husband is not bothered
by onion when I have tears running down my cheeks. (I LOVE
onion--but cutting it is a pain.) Moreover, I find that
I am bothered a lot more now than I used to be when I was
younger--so it can change. What happened to me?
I had heard, "If you keep your mouth closed while cutting
the onion, it won't hurt." That used to work for me, but
it has gotten to the point now that it makes no difference.
I also have heard that people who work in factories which
process onions will cry for the first 10 minutes or so in
the morning, and then get used to it. If it is sulfuric
acid, I would think things would get worse over time.
Any ideas?
--
Sue Brezden
Real World: Room 1B17 Net World: ihnp4!drutx!slb
AT&T Information Systems
11900 North Pecos
Westminster, Co. 80234
(303)538-3829
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Honk if you love Shiva!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~mgh@hou5h.UUCP (Marcus Hand) (04/11/85)
It isn't the H2SO4 which causes problems but the C=S linkage in some complex organic molecules. The linkage name escapes me at the moment. This bond reacts with and inflames sensitive membranes in the eyes and nose and causes tearing and a runny nose. This functional group is the basis of many tear gases and is not entirely divorced from some nerve gas technology. Two other points come to mind: People who wear contact lenses have a far higher resistance to tear production caused by onions. (I was frequently asked to do onion chopping for the other members of my household when I shared a big house.) Onions with a low potential to cause tears have been bred by plant research labs: unfortunately the results were unsuccessful because the onions also lost their taste. -- Marcus Hand (hou5h!mgh)
seb@ahutb.UUCP (s.e.badian) (04/12/85)
REFERENCES: <2454@drutx.UUCP>, <425@hou5h.UUCP> To peel onions without crying(I am blinded by them) stick the onion in the fridge to cool it down. Makes big difference(but I often don't remember to stick the onion in there 1/2 hour before I start cooking dinner). Sharon Badian ihnp4!hocsp!ahutb!seb
herbie@watdcsu.UUCP (Herb Chong [DCS]) (04/13/85)
In article <425@hou5h.UUCP> mgh@hou5h.UUCP (Marcus Hand) writes: >It isn't the H2SO4 which causes problems but the C=S linkage in some >complex organic molecules. The linkage name escapes me at the moment. >This bond reacts with and inflames sensitive membranes in the eyes and nose >and causes tearing and a runny nose. This functional group is the basis of >many tear gases and is not entirely divorced from some nerve gas technology. last month (or was it the month before) in scientific american, the chemistry of garlic (and onions) was a featured article. Herb Chong... I'm user-friendly -- I don't byte, I nybble....
js2j@mhuxt.UUCP (sonntag) (04/15/85)
> People who wear contact lenses have a far higher resistance to > tear production caused by onions. (I was frequently asked to > do onion chopping for the other members of my household when I > shared a big house.) Contact lenses may help for onions, but they can be a real hazard when dicing hot peppers. I once unthinkingly rubbed the corner of my eye with the back of my knuckle while dicing jalepienos (sp?) and was in agony for the next half hour. Attempts to remove the contact, even after washing hands thouroughly, only aggravated the problem, until I was unable to even open the eye. I finally filled the sink with water, immersed my face, and pried the eye open, allowing the contact to float out. After washing the contact and letting it soak for a day, it *still* hurt for a while when I put it back in. -- Jeff Sonntag ihnp4!mhuxt!js2j "In the long run, we'll all be dead."-John Maynard Keynes
figmo@tymix.UUCP (Lynn Gold) (04/18/85)
Freezing onion is a BIG help. The "odor" gets to your eyes because it is able to dissolve in the air surrounding where you are cutting it. If you freeze the onion, it takes longer for the irritant to get in the air (often long enough for you to be able to chop the onion without getting seriously affected), and it doesn't have any effect on the flavor in cooking. If you are slicing said onion(s) for sandwiches, try doing so under running water. Using this method, most of the irritant dissolves in the water running over the onion and down the drain. --Lynn Gold ...tymix!figmo
hom@houxm.UUCP (H.MORRIS) (04/19/85)
>> People who wear contact lenses have a far higher resistance to >> tear production caused by onions. (I was frequently asked to >> do onion chopping for the other members of my household when I >> shared a big house.) However, if you remove your contact lenses and replace them the next morning (sometimes even after a shower), the result is sometimes painfull. I've had this problem after mincing large amounts of garlic (not with onions). I've head lemon juice will get the oils off, but have yet to try it. Hal Morris
bub@ames.UUCP (Bubbette McLeod) (04/23/85)
> I've had this problem after mincing large amounts of > garlic (not with onions). I've head lemon juice will get the oils > off, but have yet to try it. BEWARE, lemon juice is almost as bad as garlic or onion, when it comes to contact lenses!