Yellow or red. Above all, cut it as thinly as possible. On TikTok, tips for preparing “onion water” are clear and precise. Identified by the hashtag “onion water”, this new digital fad is already viral with more than 23 million views. To date, the most popular post alone has been viewed more than two million times. With each publication, the TikTokeurs advise the same trick: slice an onion and immerse it in filtered water. The beverage must then be kept for at least twelve hours at fridgeotherwise overnight.
What purpose ? Relieve cough, clear sinuses and get rid of a cold faster.
For some authors of these videos, one might even recover from a flu even faster by sipping this elixir. And according to some enthusiastic comments, onion water can even lower a fever…
To understand why so many videos ignite around this so-called trick, a reminder of the current medical context is necessary. Just as France is facing an epidemic of bronchiolitis, the UNITED STATESwhere most of these videos were shot, have to manage a triple health crisis combining cases induced by respiratory syncytial virus (responsible for the bronchiolitis) as well as the Covid-19 and the flu. According to CNN, the flu epidemic is at its highest level in the last ten years in the country of Uncle Sam. The situation, which worries the American population, has even found a name in the media: “tripledemic”. , contraction of “triple” and “epidemic”, which refers to the association of three respiratory infections that are currently putting the US healthcare system on high alert.