Onions

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HensAloud
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Onions

Post by HensAloud »

ONIONS! I had never heard this!!! I found it on FB.
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.
Angela
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Americanlady
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Re: Onions

Post by Americanlady »

Hi, Hensaloud. I can't believe it ... I heard exactly the same thing about onions ability to absorb bacteria today. Wow, it's worth a try, right?
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mrs boodles
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Re: Onions

Post by mrs boodles »

BLIMEY, I am going to show this to hubby as he usually ends up having a cheese and onion sandwich after I have gone to bed and only uses half an onion and leaves the other half in the veg bowl. Have to say though that he has done this for years and he has never had stomach upset. I would never have thought an onion could do all that. scarey.
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Re: Onions

Post by jannie »

This is a really old story that I received as a round robin letter from America ...long before pc's became the norm .. It's complete twaddle and there are dozens of websites explaining why...

Part of the story tells that a doctor apparently looked at the flu virus under a microscope in 1919. This was impossible as the microscope with the technology to look at viruses wasn't invented untill 1931. {rofwl}

So bin the email and enjoy your onions. )t' )t'
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HensAloud
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Re: Onions

Post by HensAloud »

jannie wrote:This is a really old story that I received as a round robin letter from America ...long before pc's became the norm .. It's complete twaddle and there are dozens of websites explaining why...

Part of the story tells that a doctor apparently looked at the flu virus under a microscope in 1919. This was impossible as the microscope with the technology to look at viruses wasn't invented untill 1931. {rofwl}

So bin the email and enjoy your onions. )t' )t'



And I really believed it too :oops:
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p.penn
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Re: Onions

Post by p.penn »

I always store cut onions, covered in cling film in the fridge, with no problems. Having said that, my husband always used to say that cut onions attract bacteria, so I wouldn't leave one out in the air.
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Re: Onions

Post by Benny&Co »

I haven't read all the message, but I heard that onions if left peeled in the room can attract bacteria and thereby keep the bugs from humans.

I've stored them in a plastic box in the fridge with no problems.

Also what about spring onions/scallions? I don't use them all in one go, so there's usually a bunch in my fridge.
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albertajune
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Re: Onions

Post by albertajune »

This reminds me of a program that was on TV last week, about a food inspector visiting eating outlets. He told one man that he couldn't use raw carrot in coleslaw, or raw onion, but it later emerged that he had misinterpreted instructions.
ANY vegetable that has been in contact with soil, carries bacteria if not well washed. This also included things like potatoes. The reason of course being that lots of plant feed and compost includes manure.
I always eat sliced raw onions, with no ill effect. Like any food that isn't used, it should be stored in the fridge, in a container or wrapping. As you say Bev, what about spring onions!
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paddy graham
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Re: Onions

Post by paddy graham »

If any of us kids went down with a cold,Mum used to put a raw onion by the side of our beds at night to attract the germs and stop it spreading to the others.Another of her ways was to boil an onion and make us drink the water.We never seemed to be ill for long.
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Re: Onions

Post by Freeranger »

Sorry to be swotty, but do have some food science training - though don't take this as gospel as it's only some....I think it probably IS true though that commercial mayo is fine, partly because it doesn't contain raw egg and partly because it does contain all the additives/preservatives, and it's pH will deter some of the harmful stuff. As to the rest, I don't know about the attracting bacteria theory rather than just killing it, but logically, if it worked that quickly you'd be dead by the time you finished your sandwich. Wrapping it quickly and keeping it in the fridge (you'd want to anyway to stop it tainting other things like butter) would stop the bacteria from multiplying quickly and keep it fresh enough. You see raw chopped onion in sandwich shops, and coleslaw for that matter, but Environmental Health advise that in food manufacture and retail, the raw stuff be washed in a biodegradable antibacterial solution or treated in another way like irradiation or packaged under nitrogen (germs can't multiply)
I'm sure that there is research to back up the plague and infection claims for onion and garlic. Not so daft after all. )t'
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