photo credit
Hello Steemtians, Good Morning to you all,
Today I love to share a curious fact that has actually left me curious for some time, really curious but I haven't done anything about my curiosity until now, when I saw the curious fact contest, which has actually motivated to heal my level of curiosity on this matter, which is

WHY DO ONIONS MAKE US CRY?

photo credit
Yea, it may really look funny but it's a fact, why do onions make you cry?
Here are findings from my research.
ENJoy!!!
Onions act in self-defense, and tears are the consequence.
For plants and animals alike, life is all about survival and reproduction. Onions are no exception. To stop greedy predators from eating the bulbs, onions release volatile chemicals that cause our eyes to well up.

Onions are perennial plants and part of the Allium family. This means that in the first year of their life cycle, they form a tasty bulb that serves as an energy store. The following year, the plant produces a flower and seeds, allowing it to reproduce.

photo credit

Sophisticated chemistry is needed to defend the onion from attack, and scientists have recently identified how the enzyme responsible for this process works.

Tear factor
The chemical at the heart of our discomfort is called propanethial S-oxide, which is also known as lachrymatory factor (LF). The technical term for our tear glands is "lacrimal glands," and LF is a chemical that causes tears.

photo credit
Only three other molecules with similar tear-inducing properties have been found to date, and they are all produced by plants.

When we start chopping, the cells inside the onion are broken up. As a consequence, an enzyme called allinase is released, which produces the chemicals that are subsequently broken down into flavor molecules. These give onions their characteristic taste.

Some of the chemicals involved in this reaction are turned into LF by LF synthase. When LF comes into contact with the front of the eye, or the cornea, nerve endings located here signal to the brain that an irritant has arrived on the scene. This, in turn, leads to signaling back from the brain to the tear glands.

Tears and blinking are subsequently initiated to remove the pesky irritant from the cornea.

The elusive enzyme
Understanding the structure and function of enzymes is a complex science. Although LF synthase was identified as early as 2002, until now, no one has been able to show how it actually works.

The process goes as follows:

1.Lachrymatory-factor synthase is released into the air when we cut an onion.

2.The synthase enzyme converts the amino acids sulfoxides of the onion into sulfenic acid.

3.The unstable sulfenic acid rearranges itself into syn-ropanethial-S-oxide.

4.Syn-propanethial-S-oxide gets into the air and comes in contact with our eyes.
The lachrymal glands become irritated and produces the tears

photo credit

Harnessing health benefits
Onions have a wealth of health benefits. Studies suggest a link between the chemicals in onions and the inhibition of cancer growth, as well as improvement of sleep and mood.

As they are also a very good source of dietary vitamin C, which is a building block of collagen, onions may well play a role in hair and skin health.

So, What Can I Do?
You've probably heard plenty of tips: Hold a silver spoon in your mouth, hold a piece of bread in your mouth, cut the onion underwater, use a super sharp knife... But Block's tip is simple, and makes plenty of sense once you understand the onion science. "If you just cut the onion in a stream of air blowing away from your face," he says, "then you'll pull the molecules away and they won't get to your eyes.

The next time you are getting your chopping board ready to whip up a meal full of healthful onions, think of the amazing biochemical processes that will unfold in front of your teary eyes.

Thanks for reading

References

1.Medicalnewstoday
2.Dailymail
3.Discovermagazine