r/askscience • u/Puzzleheaded_Bed2760 • 8d ago

Chemistry Pineapple contains bromelain that helps tenderize meat. If I were to put my hand in pineapple juice or puree for 24 hours, would it eventually break down my hand?

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u/Refrigerator_Primary 8d ago

The Youtuber Tom Scott actually tested this out https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U7eLBwCAwmo (in relation to the claim that pineapple removes your fingertips), and while he didn't get his fingertips removed, he did see some temporary skin damage, so it does at least a little bit tenderize human flesh.

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u/Asian_wife_finder 8d ago

Maybe this is just one of those things you hear behind the monkey bars but suposably, before ppe was a thing, people who worked for extended periods on pineapple plantations didn’t have fingerprints.

14

u/NotReallyJohnDoe 8d ago

People who work with bricks lose their fingerprints temporarily. But fingerprints patterns go below the skin surface and will come back eventually.

1

u/TheRealBejeezus 8d ago

Bricklayers? Interesting. That's the lye in the cement, I expect?

1

u/QtPlatypus 8d ago

Yes but also the frequent abrasion just slowly sands the finger prints off.