Manhattan GMAT CAT SC question - Spicy Foods

[at1687]

(apologies for incorrectly posting this in the wrong forum earlier, this is an MGMAT question)

The reason that certain spicy foods, such as the Habanero pepper, makes some people sweat is because they contain a chemical that stimulates the same nerve endings in the mouth as does a rise in temperature; this stimulation sometimes results in the activation of certain biological cooling mechanisms, one of which is perspiration.


a) The reason that certain spicy foods, such as the Habanero pepper, makes some people sweat is because they contain a chemical that stimulates the same nerve endings in the mouth as does a rise in temperature

b) The reason that certain spicy foods, such as the Habanero pepper, makes some people sweat is that these foods contain a chemical that stimulates the same nerves in the mouth like a rise in temperature

c) Certain spicy foods, such as the Habanero pepper, make some people sweat because they contain a chemical that stimulates the same nerves in the mouth like a rise in temperature does

d) The reason that certain spicy foods, such as the Habanero pepper, make some people sweat is that these foods contain a chemical that stimulates the same nerves in the mouth as does a rise in temperature

e) The reason that certain spicy foods, such as the Habanero pepper, make some people sweat is because they contain a chemical that stimulates the same nerves in the mouth as does a rise in temperature

This appeared in my first CAT test of Manhattan GMAT in the 6-pack. D is the correct answer according to MGMAT.

While I can see that D corrects for all the errors that other choices don't, D still seems incorrect because the word 'that' is used twice:
The reason that certain spicy foods ... makes some people sweat is that these foods contain ...

Isn't this redundant and incorrect? Shouldn't it just be
The reason certain spicy foods makes some people sweat is that these foods contain...

Thank you in advance for your help.

[jnelson0612]

Here's some discussion on the two uses of "that" here:

habanero-pepper-t10860.html

Two uses of "that" is not necessarily redundant or incorrect. As Tim states in the thread, the second "that" is just introducing a subordinate clause.

Here's another example of two "thats" in a single sentence:

"I've noticed that you run the can opener and that your cat comes running."

In this case, the second "that" is useful because it creates a new clause and implies a cause and effect. The can opener causes the cat to come running. If I just say "I've noticed that you run the can opener and your cat comes running", this creates a parallel construction and implies that the two things are happening at the same time. However, this does not indicate that one is causing the other.

As I tell students, "that" is often a helpful word on GMAT SC. Beware of eliminating multiple uses of "that" without a really good reason to do so.