Big Question: What chemical reaction happens when you mix boiled sugar and baking soda? We found out that it makes hokey pokey. Some of us think that the bubbles release carbon dioxide when we boil sugars together. Some of us were surprised that these ingredients didn't cause a huge explosion. We emailed Dr Sarah Murphy as she studied science when she was leaning to be a Doctor. Here is what she said when we asked the question "If baking soda makes a chemical reaction with sugars to make carbon dioxide, how do human bodies make carbon dioxide? "The human body makes carbon dioxide in a very similar way. When the cells in our body use oxygen (we breathe this in) and sugars in our body's make energy, carbon dioxide and water is made. This is called respiration. The carbon dioxide is taken by our blood to our lungs and it is gotten rid of when we breathe out".