Entropymama Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 So. Today on Facebook, someone I know posted a picture of bowls of onions with the caption, "It's that time of year again! Colds and flu are everywhere so I'm putting out the onions!" Followed by lots of encouraging comments. For those who may not have heard, the idea is that cut onions absorb toxins and you are less likely to get sick if you put them around your home. I believe this started during the plague years in England. My personal thought is that this is impossible. I mean, sure, if some bacteria are floating through the air and land on the onion they'll stay there. But what about the flu virus on my doorknob? It doesn't have the motility to up and fly to the onion. My understanding is that bacteria and viruses have very limited motility no matter where they are. I don't buy that an onion has some kind of magnetic attraction on them. I also don't buy the pictures of blackened onions as proof. They're rotting, proof that the bacteria are actually thriving on the onion, not being wiped out. I could Google this and find out if it's a real thing, of course, but I thought the responses here would be more amusing. Do you think it works? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MiMi 4under3 Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 Do you think it works? No. :confused1: 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spryte Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 No. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amira Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 If your house had cut onions all over the place, you'd probably have a lot fewer people willing to visit which could cut down on your exposure to lots of things, germs or otherwise. :) 26 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
albeto. Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 If that were on my facebook, I'd have a hard time not replying... 12 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 I think having onions all over the place might repel people who could be carrying germs. So yep, good flu repellent. Eating them raw and reeking of onion would further discourage close contact with other humans, reducing the chance of being sneezed on or even spoken to. 9 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Entropymama Posted October 23, 2015 Author Share Posted October 23, 2015 If that were on my facebook, I'd have a hard time not replying... :lol: :lol: :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redsquirrel Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 I just read what i thought was a terrible YA book set in the time of the influenza outbreak during WW1. Everyone was eating onion soup every night, chewing raw onions and also garlic gum. At one point someone gets the flu and the only thing anyone can think to do is cover her in cut onions. it's just a superstition. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanaqui Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 Better to go with an asafoetida bag. That'll repel EVERYBODY. No friends? No flu! Alternatively, go to CVS and get vaccinated. Then you can keep seeing your friends and also not be stinky. 8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom-ninja. Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 Um, do I think it works? It's not a matter of personal opinion. We know scientifically that it doesn't. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HomeAgain Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 EATING onions can help keep you healthier. They do have antibacterial/antiseptic/antifungal properties. They've actually been used to cover wounds and help them heal. Scattering them around? No. No more than sloshing Nyquil around will help ward off sickness. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arcadia Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 Eating onions work as they are antioxidants. Fried onions smell and taste good :) Cut onions as flu repellent is a waste of good food. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suzanne in ABQ Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 One of my dearest friends puts sliced onions in her kids' socks when they're sick. She does a lot of things I think are a bit quacky, but I love her anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madteaparty Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 I don't know, I think eating onions and garlic does keep one healthier. But I'm not in the public health business. Onions are probably equally effective to the flu vaccine last year ;) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
goldberry Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 Similarly eating garlic is good for your immune system, but wearing it around your neck does nothing. ;) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 Similarly eating garlic is good for your immune system, but wearing it around your neck does nothing. ;) really? I always thought that would ward off vampires? 8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
albeto. Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 . 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mamaraby Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 Oh my. Somehow I'm not surprised. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SparklyUnicorn Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 No Even if it did, I hate onions and they hate me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tammyla Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 I think a necklace of onions would keep a lot of people away like a garlic one, but sick people usually can't smell. If I entered a house with black-rotting onions, I'd want to leave :laugh: . 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Butter Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 That goes around every year. I know someone who tried it. It didn't work. A friend of mine posted this picture that supposedly her friend's friend (isn't it always a friend of a friend?) took at a doctor's office. It said the flu is not a season and is actually our body's response to less sunshine and higher sugar consumption. I couldn't resist. I had to respond. We got the flu in September. I'm still dealing with a lingering cough from the bronchitis I ended up with because of it. We got it before the flu shot was available at our doctor's office (they received it at both the boys' ped and our regular doctor the last week of September). The sun was still shining bright in the sky and we were still having unseasonably warm temperatures in the high 90s (in fact it's only been in the last few days we've dropped to more typical October temps in the low 80s). Sugar consumption was still the same since we haven't reach Halloween yet and, well, it was still basically summer. And, yet, we got the flu. Because it is, you know, caused by a virus. I was a bit disturbed (and disbelieving) that that sign was actually at a doctor's office. My friend never did respond by 6 or 8 mutual friends liked what I wrote. :lol: 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Word Nerd Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 It might work as a people repellent. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wendy not in HI Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 I just read what i thought was a terrible YA book set in the time of the influenza outbreak during WW1. Everyone was eating onion soup every night, chewing raw onions and also garlic gum. At one point someone gets the flu and the only thing anyone can think to do is cover her in cut onions. it's just a superstition. I just finished the same book - all of the onions the two girls ate and bathed in did not prevent the flu, but neither of them died, so..... nope. Still not eating 'em. (I mean, I will eat them in soup and salad, but not like an apple.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lady Florida. Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 Um, do I think it works? It's not a matter of personal opinion. We know scientifically that it doesn't. This. Also a variety of fruits and vegetables (onions are a vegetable) make up a healthy diet. That doesn't mean that eating them with either prevent or cure the flu, or any other ailment for that matter. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lady Florida. Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 double post Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pawz4me Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 I think you're supposed to juice the onions and mix it with some essential oil. And then spray it all around the house. And on yourself and your loved ones. But I could be wrong. :leaving: 14 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laurie Posted October 24, 2015 Share Posted October 24, 2015 For those who may not have heard, the idea is that cut onions absorb toxins and you are less likely to get sick if you put them around your home. I believe this started during the plague years in England. Here's my non-scientific thought. If I kept cut onions around my house my eyes and nose would be running. Maybe this steady flow would keep out the airborne viruses! (I've heard that it's a good idea on an airplane to stay hydrated and keep your nasal passages moist if you want to avoid catching something.) In either case, flu or cut onions, I'd be going through a lot of kleenex! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chalex Posted October 24, 2015 Share Posted October 24, 2015 Similarly eating garlic is good for your immune system, but wearing it around your neck does nothing. ;) My neighbor recently told me that taking garlic pills had help him recover from a bronchial type illness that was reoccurring. His doctors were impressed. It did a number on his stomach though... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MyThreeSons Posted October 24, 2015 Share Posted October 24, 2015 I also don't buy the pictures of blackened onions as proof. They're rotting, proof that the bacteria are actually thriving on the onion, not being wiped out. Bingo! This is what I tried to tell a FB friend last year when she posted about the magic of onions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nd293 Posted October 24, 2015 Share Posted October 24, 2015 Yes, someone I know does this. I am so tired of making an effort to not roll my eyes over stuff like this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stacia Posted October 24, 2015 Share Posted October 24, 2015 Here's my non-scientific thought. If I kept cut onions around my house my eyes and nose would be running. Maybe this steady flow would keep out the airborne viruses! (I've heard that it's a good idea on an airplane to stay hydrated and keep your nasal passages moist if you want to avoid catching something.) In either case, flu or cut onions, I'd be going through a lot of kleenex! I was thinking something similar. Having oodles of cut onions sitting around an enclosed space would make for a bracing smell (I would think) & cause your nose to run. So, if you were clogged up, I guess it might help in that way. Otherwise, no to all the stuff about cut onions lounging around your house & catching viruses as they rampage about.... Yeah, it just doesn't work that way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mergath Posted October 24, 2015 Share Posted October 24, 2015 One of my dearest friends puts sliced onions in her kids' socks when they're sick. She does a lot of things I think are a bit quacky, but I love her anyway. In the socks while the kids are wearing them!?? Wow. Wouldn't that irritate the skin? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elfknitter.# Posted October 24, 2015 Share Posted October 24, 2015 In the socks while the kids are wearing them!?? Wow. Wouldn't that irritate the skin? That's the old wives' tale I've heard... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Holly Posted October 24, 2015 Share Posted October 24, 2015 A couple months ago I had a sore wisdom tooth and swollen lymph nodes. After looking at home remedies for wisdom tooth troubles (since, of course, things always go bad over the weekend when offices are closed) I bit down on a small piece of onion placed on my infected tooth. The pain lessened immediately, and the next day it was completely better...which is much more impressive than an antibiotic would have been! That however is a huge step away from a slice of onion absorbing the flu virus...I've never understood how that could possibly do anything. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jasperstone Posted October 24, 2015 Share Posted October 24, 2015 In the socks while the kids are wearing them!?? Wow. Wouldn't that irritate the skin? I've heard you put thin cotton ones on first, then the layer of onion or garlic, then another pair of socks over it- to avoid the burn. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PinkyandtheBrains. Posted October 24, 2015 Share Posted October 24, 2015 No. It does not work. Science. 9 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melissa in Australia Posted October 24, 2015 Share Posted October 24, 2015 when I was little I know an ancient man. He was a young teen during the Spanish flu. He claimed that his mother made the whole family eat a raw onion every day and nobody in his family got the Spanish flue at all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
El... Posted October 24, 2015 Share Posted October 24, 2015 Albeto, DH and I are just dying over that spoiler! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jane in NC Posted October 24, 2015 Share Posted October 24, 2015 Am I the only one envisioning the mega-crop of fruit flies that would procreate over dishes of cut onions left around the house? Yikes! 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom-ninja. Posted October 24, 2015 Share Posted October 24, 2015 when I was little I know an ancient man. He was a young teen during the Spanish flu. He claimed that his mother made the whole family eat a raw onion every day and nobody in his family got the Spanish flue at all. Because no one would get near them. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lady Florida. Posted October 24, 2015 Share Posted October 24, 2015 Am I the only one envisioning the mega-crop of fruit flies that would procreate over dishes of cut onions left around the house? Yikes! Not anymore, now that you've given us that picture. :) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 24, 2015 Share Posted October 24, 2015 when I was little I know an ancient man. He was a young teen during the Spanish flu. He claimed that his mother made the whole family eat a raw onion every day and nobody in his family got the Spanish flue at all. +/- 2/3 of the world's population never got the Spanish flu at the height of the epidemic, onions or no. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
goldberry Posted October 24, 2015 Share Posted October 24, 2015 My neighbor recently told me that taking garlic pills had help him recover from a bronchial type illness that was reoccurring. His doctors were impressed. It did a number on his stomach though... Garlic is really useful for chronic sinus infections. It functions as a low grade antibiotic. I used to always get a sinus infection every time I got a cold. Now I start taking garlic when I get a cold, no more sinus infections. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Entropymama Posted October 24, 2015 Author Share Posted October 24, 2015 I've heard of the onions on your feet thing, too. I seem to remember someone selling the idea that you put the onions in your socks while you slept, then in the morning whatever was black, growing, disgusting on the onion was from toxins leaving your body. I always figured it was just the stuff on the bottom of your feet. And just to clarify, I wasn't really asking if it works. It was a rhetorical question. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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