I wonder what I would do without onions in my kitchen! Most women feel that way, but to those that do not think onion as important as that, you need to read this!
Onions can lower our risk of several cancers such as colorectal cancer, laryngeal cancer, and ovarian cancer, even when we consume it in only moderate amounts. When I say moderate, I mean about 1-2 times a week. For other cancer types, however, moderate intake of onion has not been enough to show significant risk reduction.
For cancer types like esophageal cancer and cancers of the mouth, daily intake of onion is required before significant risk reduction can be achieved. Frequent intake of onions can help increase our bone density and may be of special benefit to women of menopausal age who are experiencing loss of bone density.
Women who have passed the age of menopause may be able to lower their risk of hip fracture through daily consumption of onions. By including onions in your daily meal plan, you get to be at lower risk of cancers and bone mineral loss simultaneously!
The high sulfur content of onions may provide direct benefits to our connective tissue. Many of our connective tissue components require sulfur for their formation. These sulfur compounds may also work in an anti-clotting capacity and help prevent the unwanted clumping together of blood platelet cells.
Research has also shown that sulfur compounds in onion can lower blood levels of cholesterol and triglycerides, and also improve cell membrane function in red blood cells.
Onions also has anti-inflammatory benefits because it contains onionin, a unique sulfur molecule that is found in the bulb portion of the plant. Onionin has been shown to inhibit the activity of macrophages, specialised white blood cells that play a major role in our body’s immune defense system in which one of their defense activities involves the triggering of large-scale inflammatory responses.
Though macrophage activity is good, inhibition of their activity can sometimes be critical in getting chronic unwanted inflammation under control. In addition, onion also houses the flavonoid antioxidant, quercetin which also provides us with anti-inflammatory benefits. These antioxidant helps prevent the oxidation of fatty acids in our body.
Note that the flavonoids in onion tend to be more concentrated in the outer layers of the flesh. So, in order to maximise your health benefits, peel off as little of the fleshy, edible portion as possible when removing the onion’s outermost paper layer. Even a small amount of “overpeeling” can result in unwanted loss of flavonoids.
