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 ofthe farmers and their families had contracted it and many died. The doctor came upon this one farmer and to hissurprise, everyone was very healthy. When thedoctor asked what the farmer was doing that wasdifferent the wife replied that she had placed anunpeeled onion in a dish in the rooms of the home, (probably only two rooms back then). Thedoctor couldn't believe it and asked if he could have one of the onions and place it under themicroscope. She gave him one and when he didthis, he did find the flu virus in the onion. Itobviously absorbed the bacteria, therefore, keeping the family healthy. Now, I heard this story from my hairdresser in AZ.She said that several years ago many of her employees were coming down with the flu and sowere 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...(and no, she is not in the onion business..). The moral of the story is, buy some onions andplace them in bowls around your home. If you work at a desk, place one or two in your officeor under your desk or even on top somewhere. Try it and see what happens. We did it last yearand we never got the flu. If this helps you and your loved ones from getting sick, all the better. If you do get the flu, it might just be a mild case...Whatever, what have you got to lose? Just a few bucks on onions!!! Now there is a P.S. to this for I sent it to a friendin Oregon who regularly contributes material to me on health issues. She replied with this mostinteresting experience about onions: Thanks for the reminder...I don't know about thefarmers story, but I do know that I contactedpheumonia and needless to say I was very ill. I came across an article that said to cut both endsoff an onion, put one end on a fork and then place the forked end into an empty jar...placingthe jar next to the sick patient at night. It said the onion would be black in the morning from thegerms. 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 onionsand garlic placed around the room saved many from the black plague years ago. They havepowerful antibacterial, antiseptic properties. This is the other note. LEFTOVER ONIONS ARE POISONOUS. I have used an onion which has been left in thefridge, and sometimes I don't use a whole oneat a time, so save the other half for later. Now with this info, I have changed my mind...will buy smaller onions in the future. I had the wonderful privelege of touring MullinsFood Products, makers of mayonnaise. Mullinsis huge, and is owned by 11 brothers and sistersin the Mullins family. My friend Jeanne, is the CEO. Questions about food poisoning came up, and Iwanted to share what I learned from a chemist. The guy who gave us our tour is named Ed. He'sone of the brothers. Ed is a chemistry expert and is involved in developing most of the sauce formula. He's even developed sauce formula forMcDonald's. Keep in mind that Ed is a food chemistry whiz.During the tour, someone asked if we reallyneeded to worry about mayonnaise. People arealways worried that mayonnaise will spoil. Ed'sanswer will surprise you. Ed said that allcommercially made mayo is completely safe. "It doesn't even have to be refrigerated. No harmin refrigerating it, but it's not really necessary." He explained that the pH in mayonnaise is setat a point that bacteria could not survive in thatenvironment. He then talked about the quaintessential picnic, with the bowl of potato saladsitting on the table and how everyone blames the mayonnaise when someone gets sick. Ed says that when food poisoning is reported,the first thing that officials look for is when the'victim' last ate ONIONS and where those onionscame from (in the potato salad?). Ed says it'snot 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 forbacteria, 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 ina zip-lock bag and put it in your refrigerator. It's already contaminated enough just by beingcut open and out for a bit, that it can be a dangerto you (and doubly watch out for those onionsyou put on your hotdogs at the baseball park!). Ed says that if you take the leftover onion andcook it like crazy, you'll probably be okay, but ifyou slice that leftover onion and put it on yoursandwich, you're asking for trouble. Both theonions and the moist potato in a potato salad,will attract and grow bacteria faster than anycommercial mayonnaise will even begin to break down. So, how's that for news? Take it for what you will.I (the author) am going to be very careful aboutmy onions from now on. For some reason, I seea lot of credibility coming from a chemist and acompany that produces millions of pounds ofmayonnaise every year. Also, dogs should never eat onions. Theirstomachs cannot metabolize onions. Pleaseremember it is dangerous to cut an onion, andtry to use it to cook the next day. It becomeshighly poisonous for even a single night andcreates Toxic bacteria which may cause AdverseStomach infections because of excess Bile secretions and even Food poisoning. Please pass this on to all you love and care for.