The tears are one drawback....the smell that lingers on one’s hands is twice AS BAD. The oder would awake me in the middle of the night smelling worse than a skunk. No matter what, it could not be eliminated with anything but time. However, found a remedy for that at last. After handling onions-— soap up the hands grab the stainless steel faucet with both hands....sliding them up/down for about 2-3 minutes. Ok...no gutter comments, please. It does work and the odor is no longer any problem. Will try the gum for the tears, tho that is not much of a problem. Some things one can life with.
Your post reminds me of two things:
The first time I made a reduction sauce of balsamic vinegar/butter, for a steak: it was WONDERFUL! But all night long, and into the next day, the smell of the vinegar was in my hair, in the house, everywhere.
And the first time I chopped jalapenos (gloveless) I didn’t realize how hot they were. The burning under my fingernails lasted for 24 hours! There was no way to wash it out.
The chewing gum was a revelation for me, though; occasionally, an onion is mild and doesn’t set me off; but usually I’ll cry a river.
The only thing I can think is that when you are chewing gum, your mouth is open and active; perhaps the fumes are absorbed more by the mouth than the nose, which is closer to eyes. Or, are the fumes absorbed by the gum?
Anyhow, it worked for me :-)
-JT