Onions have been prized for their medicinal properties since ancient times. They boast a high nutritional content, regulate blood sugar, and can be versatile–useful in many different types of recipes. Here are our top reasons to add more onions to your diet and get all of onion’s health benefits.
High Vitamin Content in Onions
Onions are a good source of a number of vitamins, including vitamin C, folate, and vitamin B6. Vitamin C is important for immune function and helps protect the body against harmful free radicals. Folate is essential for various body processes, including DNA synthesis and repair, cell growth, and the maturation of red blood cells. It is particularly important for people who are pregnant to ensure that they are getting sufficient folate because it is crucial for healthy fetal development. Vitamin B6 plays an important role in red blood cell production, nerve function, and metabolism.
May Reduce Heart Disease Risk Factors
Eating a diet rich in onions may help to reduce your risk of developing heart disease. Onions contain quercetin, a powerful anti-inflammatory which may reduce high blood pressure, a major risk factor for heart disease. In one study, participants with high blood pressure were given 162 mg of quercetin-rich onion extract daily over the course of six weeks, while a control group was given a placebo. By the end of the study, the participants who took the onion extract had significantly lower blood pressure compared to the control group.
May Support Gut Health
Onions are rich in fiber, especially the non-digestible type that helps to maintain gut health. Although we can’t digest prebiotic fiber, the bacteria that live in our gut do and they use it as a fuel source to help increase their numbers and produce beneficial by-products called short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs). Research shows that these SCFAs are important for maintaining the health and integrity of the gut and supporting our immunity and digestion.
Onions do, however, contain inulin and fructo-oligosaccharides – these are classed as FODMAPs – types of carbohydrates that may be problematic for some people.
May Help Regulate Blood Sugar
Among onion’s wide-ranging health benefits is their ability to maintain blood sugar. Including onions in the diet may help regulate blood sugar levels; there is still much for us to learn in this area, but a small study of type 1 and 2 diabetics found eating 100g raw red onion significantly lowered fasting blood sugar after four hours.
This effect may once again be down to the plant compound quercetin, which appears to interact with cells in the small intestine, pancreas, liver and skeletal muscle.
Good Source of Antioxidants
are molecules that protect your body by fighting harmful free radicals. Antioxidants may help to slow the aging process and reduce the risk of developing certain types of cancer. Onions are an excellent source of these, containing 17 different antioxidants. Red onions in particular contain anthocyanins, a type of antioxidant found in the plant pigments responsible for giving red onions their distinctive color. Consuming an anthocyanin-rich diet has been shown to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease.
References:
https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/food-details/170000/nutrients
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22123635/
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7254783/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27488237/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21079693/
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