Except for Your Breath, Onions Are Good for You
By Paul Rothbart
Onions are generally considered to be a food to add flavor. Good in a salad, with steaks, or even on pizza. As onions are in the same family as garlic, shallots, leeks, and chives. This group of vegetables is nutritious and has some excellent health benefits. They have also been used medicinally since ancient times. Onions play more than a supporting role in nutrition and health. Here are some of the benefits they provide.
They Are Nutrition Dense
Onions are one of those foods that are loaded with nutrition while being low in calories. This is an ideal situation. A medium onion has just 44 calories and with its strong flavor, you don't need to use a lot of it. Onions are very high in Vitamin C, one of the most important nutrients for good health. They also contain high amounts of folate, pyridoxine, and the electrolyte potassium.
Heart Health Benefits
The Vitamin C in onions functions as an antioxidant. Onions also have a high concentration of the flavonoid antioxidant, quercetin. These substances reduce inflammation and lower bad cholesterol which promotes good heart health, reducing the risk of heart attack and stroke. They also have been shown to lower blood pressure. Research involving 70 overweight people with high blood pressure found that 162 milligrams of onion a day significantly reduced blood pressure.
They Fight Cancer
Eating onions and other vegetables in their family has been linked to lower risk of stomach, colorectal, and other cancers. Research found that people who consumed the highest amount of these vegetables were 22 percent less likely to be diagnosed with stomach cancer as those who consumed the lowest amount. Onions contain a number of sulfur compounds that slow the development of tumors and inhibit the spread of cancer.
Control Blood Sugar
Controlling blood sugar is essential for people with diabetes or prediabetes. A study using 42 subjects with type 2 diabetes found that eating 3.5 ounces of red onion significantly lowered blood sugar levels after four hours. A number of animal studies have shown that onions can help control blood sugar. The quercetin and sulfur compounds in onions have antidiabetic effects.
Bone Density
Dairy is the key food in fighting bone disease but research has shown that onions may also boost bone density. Studies involving postmenopausal women found that the subjects who ate onions daily had a 5 percent greater bone density than those who ate them once a month or less. It is believed that the antioxidants in onions reduce oxidative stress and prevent bone loss.
Onions are very commonly used in cooking but are not often thought of as healthy foods. They are in fact, excellent for improving health in multiple ways. Consider increasing your consumption of onions. Just keep breath mints handy.
To learn more about your health, wellness and fitness, see your local chiropractor at The Joint Chiropractic in Plymouth, Minn.