Why does peroxide bubble when you poor it on a cut, but not when you poor it in !
Question: just want to know what it is reacting to on the cut and not on a surface that you know has germs. just one of the mysteries of life im trying to solve.
Answers: just want to know what it is reacting to on the cut and not on a surface that you know has germs. just one of the mysteries of life im trying to solve.
Kibbie has the answer mostly right. hydrogen peroxide does break down the cell was of infected tissue and bacteria, but it can damage healthy cells too. The Bubbles are mearly a chemical reaction to living tissue.
Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) is an oxidizing agent...meaning, it essentially adds oxygen (or to be more exact, removes electrons) from the thing it's acting upon. The 3% solution you buy at the drug store is strong enough to break down the cell walls of bacteria (hence the reason to put it on a cut...an antiseptic). The peroxide breaks down the bacteria into H2O and O2. O2 is a gas and that's the fizzing you see
because the Oxygen in the hydrogen peroxide reacts with your blood to form bubbles