Onions For Health

Onions for Better Health, says World Health Organization

Everyone loves onions but few recognize how good they are for you! They are full of protective phytonutrients, vitamins, trace minerals, and unique anti-inflammatory compounds. Onions are one of my favorite powerfoods.

6 Health Benefits of Onions:

1. WHO recognizes that onions help relieve symptoms such as coughs, congestion asthma and respiratory infections.

Early American settlers used wild onions to treat colds, coughs, and asthma, and to repel insects.

In Chinese medicine, onions have been used to treat angina, coughs, bacterial infections, and breathing problems.

Sugar and onion juice form syrup, much used in domestic practice, for cough and other affections of the air-tubes among children.

2. Onions contain a variety of other naturally occurring chemicals known as organosulfur compounds that have been linked to lowering blood pressure and cholesterol levels.

Contain sulfides similar to those found in garlic which may lower blood lipids and blood pressure.

3. Onions are a rich source of flavonoids, substances known to provide protection against cardiovascular disease.

4. Onions are also natural anti-clotting agents since they possess substances with fibrinolytic activity and can suppress platelet-clumping. The anti-clotting effect of onions closely correlates with their sulfur content.

5. Onions provide protection against stomach cancer as onions are rich in sulfides. Studies in Greece have shown a high consumption of onions and garlic to be protective against stomach cancer. Dutch men and women who ate lots of onions (half an onion per day) had half the level of stomach cancer compared with those eating no onions at all.

6. In areas in India where they never consumed onions or garlic, people had higher blood cholesterol levels and shorter blood clotting times, than in areas in India where they ate garlic and onions regularly.

Onion Trivia:

Ancient Egyptians worshiped the onion. They believed its shape and rings symbolized eternity; it was the only vegetable that was made out of gold.
By eating parsley you can get rid of onion breath.
The largest onion ever grown weighed 10 lbs 14 oz by V. Throup of Silsden, England according to the Guinness Book of World Records.
Athletes in ancient Greece ate large quantities of onion because it was believed to lighten the balance of blood.
In Rome, gladiators had an onion rub down to firm their muscles.
In the Middle Ages, people would pay their rent with onions or give them as gifts.

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Read more: Food, General Health, Health, onions

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may not reflect those of
Care2, Inc., its employees or advertisers.

Debbie C.

9:01AM PDT on Mar 26, 2012

We love onions at our house!! I did not know they had all those nutrients in them, though. Great taste and good for you - best of both worlds (LOL).

I made a copy of the Onion Soup recipe and can't wait to try it!!

send a green star

Gita S.

1:13AM PDT on Mar 13, 2012

Thanks.

Howard C.

4:21PM PST on Mar 1, 2012

I adore onions - I live in a part of England which produces good root crops, onions and potatoes etc. When the local farmers are harvesting the onions you can smell them as they lay in the fields, drying off, oh boy they smell good. When they take them in from the fields one of our local farmers dries them in a shed that I walk past everyday with my dog - the smell is something else! Personally I prefer brown onions (the most commonly available and by far the cheapest in England), red onions are nice in a salad and are much more freely available (and cheaper) in the past couple of years. White onions aren't that freely available and are pretty expensive too. With regard to 'onion breath', my wife likes onions too so there is no problem there!!

10:09PM PST on Feb 29, 2012

Great Info. I love onions and eat them raw adding in my salads. Everyday I eat raw onion salad and I enjoy it. Sometimes I fry the onions and add in my meal.

Colleen L.

10:09PM PST on Feb 27, 2012

Great information. I cook with many types of onions in my recipes. Thanks Diana

Hello G.

4:35AM PST on Feb 26, 2012

So True :)

heather g.

3:21AM PST on Feb 26, 2012

I must try the vegan onion soup - that would be perfect in winter.
Onions are so versatile and healthy. If you don't want tears, just grill them whole - Yum!

Lika S.

2:59AM PST on Feb 26, 2012

I like flavoring my foods with onions. They're great in stirfrys, soups, stews, roasts, Mexican, Italian, Asian, American, and so much more! :)

Lynn C.

4:55PM PST on Feb 25, 2012

Wonderful posts about this humble vegetable we could not do without! Can't imagine any of the dishes that onions are used in without them!

Moses K.

1:13AM PST on Feb 25, 2012

thanks for that info.