While North India sweats through the summer heat, one tip shared by Union minister Jyotiraditya Scindia has been widely debated in recent times.
Speaking of the precautionary measures to take against the heatwave, the minister mentioned that putting an onion in his pocket would keep him protected and nothing will "happen". While the traditional remedy became the talk of the town in the digital space, people began to question whether this age-old trick could keep them safe during the hot season.
Do traditional methods help with the heat?
India has always relied on such traditional remedies during extreme weather conditions. Onions, for instance, have been used for centuries in India for their cooling effects.
People consume raw onions and place its pieces on their bodies to cool down their body temperatures. However, with climate change causing extreme heatwaves to occur frequently in India, doctors urge people to distinguish myth from science.
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It has become increasingly necessary for the community to know what information to believe during the hot season, considering how lethal these situations can be at times. Misinformation during these times may cause one to think they are safe when they aren’t.
Can onions ward off heatstroke?
Physicians say that, keeping an onion in your pocket won’t shield you from any heat-related issues.
Per NDTV, Dr Pradeep Narayan Sahu, Consultant, Internal Medicine, Manipal Hospital Bhubaneshwar, stated, “Heatwave-related information tends to spread faster than the science behind it. In this regard, one of the common myths is that carrying an onion in your pocket helps keep yourself cool or even prevents heatstroke. This traditional practice in India has no scientific backing.”
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It is perhaps because onions have certain nutritive elements that give them some potential to promote hydration when ingested. Yet external application makes no physiological sense. "Having an onion outside the body neither affects body temperature nor prevents any form of heat illness. This is because the body has a natural protective layer of skin, which does not allow an onion to absorb body heat," says Dr Sahu.
