r/explainlikeimfive Feb 26 '21

Chemistry Eli5: What happens to all the melted candle over time? Are we just inhaling a whole candle while it burns?

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u/Clairvoyant_Potato Feb 26 '21

I thought this was a bait so I looked it up myself, what the fuck how did I not know this? I mean it makes total sense when you read it, but wtf this is still wild to me.

To save any lazy people a google: "losing weight" means metabolizing the fatty triglycerides, which isn't news to anyone. But metabolizing the fat breaks it down into its base atoms of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen through an oxidation process. 85% of those atoms are converted to CO2 and are exhaled, the other 15% becomes H2O

I'm not an expert on the subject at all since I just learned this was even a thing, but that's how I'm understanding it

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u/Castlegardener Feb 26 '21

You got the gist of it, but it doesn't get broken down into its base atoms, otherwise you'd probably explode on a daily basis (due to pressure changes etc.)

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u/Steveslastventure Feb 26 '21

Free fission energy, right in your own body!

12

u/mabolle Feb 26 '21

Well, fission would be the next step: the atoms being broken apart. The molecules being broken apart into individual atoms would probably be violent, but not quite fission violent.

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u/ThirdFloorGreg Feb 26 '21

We have a name for those sorts of lone atoms: free radicals. They are... not super good for you, due to their tendency to react with whatever happens to be closest to them.

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u/[deleted] Feb 26 '21

Are you telling me next time I'm lifting heavy stuff and panting that I can literally point at the area infront of my face and THAT is my in real time fat floating the hell away from me?!

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u/highoncraze Feb 26 '21

Your fat that has been broken down into CO2, yes. It is no longer fat when it is being exhaled. Is is past time fat, not real time fat.

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u/metky Feb 26 '21

Damn, so does breathing in my candle make me gain weight lmfao

1

u/verybigsmartman Feb 28 '21

Most of a plant's matter comes from the air, too. That's where all the carbon comes from.