Onions are utilized in virtually each Indian family be it for making ready lip-smacking curries, stir-fries, refreshing salads, or spicy sandwiches. Raw, roasted, boiled, fried or baked, onions might be cooked in a wide range of methods every lending a definite style to the preparations. Apart from its culinary use, onions are extensively utilized in conventional drugs for digestive points like lack of urge for food, upset abdomen, or gallbladder problems. Onions are additionally utilized in therapy of coronary heart and blood vessel points like chest ache and hypertension. Onion hair masks are additionally extensively used because it has many advantages for hair well being from selling hair progress, stopping itchy scalp, hair loss to treating dandruff. (See pics: National Onion Day 2023: 7 fascinating facts about onions that you need to know)

Onion's many well being advantages

"Onion is widely cultivated and consumed as a vegetable and medicinal plant all over the world. It belongs to the Liliaceae family and is cultivated across Europe, North America, Asia and Africa. Onions are a storehouse of dietary flavonoids and alkenyl cysteine sulfoxides (ACSOs). The anthocyanins in onion are the reason they look red or purple in appearance. Flavonols like quercetin and its derivatives make onion skin yellow and brown in many varieties. Onion is considered antibacterial, antithrombotic, antiplatelet, and also useful in asthma," says Haripriya. N, Executive Nutritionist, Cloudnine Group of Hospitals, Chennai in an interview with HT Digital.

Benefits of onion in diabetes prevention and administration

"Including onions in the regular cooking helps to control the blood sugar values especially in prediabetes. As per a study, eating raw red onion can help reduce fasting blood sugar levels after 4 hours," says Haripriya.

Here's how onions might help management blood sugar ranges:

• Specific compounds present in onions, corresponding to quercetin and sulfur compounds, additionally possess antidiabetic results. High quantities of fibre, iron, potassium, vitamin C, and varied important micronutrients that promote well being in quite a lot of methods.
• Quercetin has been proven to work together with cells within the small gut, pancreas, skeletal muscle, fats tissue, and liver to manage whole-body blood sugar regulation.
• They decrease the blood sugar because of the reality they're prebiotics, undigested fibres that cross by means of the higher digestive tract to the big gut the place they stimulate progress of useful micro organism. And surprisingly, intestine micro organism are concerned in glucose regulation.
• It needs to be famous that the uncooked onion is probably the most useful to our well being. The low glycaemic index exhibits that it could actually assist management blood sugar ranges in diabetics.
• Ripe onion juice has been proven to offer anti-diabetic properties and forestall hyperglycaemia.

How to eat onions for diabetes administration

Onions can be utilized in contemporary raita, dosa, stuffed chapati or salads aside out of your common cooking.

Moderation is the important thing as onion accommodates sulfur and should irritate gastritis or reflux when taken on empty abdomen.

Benefits of onions in arthritis

"Arthritis is defined as inflammation that affects the joints. Most common types are osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. Onions can help reduce the inflammation in joints as it contains quercetin, flavonoids which is present abundantly in onions known to modulate immune responses," says Haripriya.

"A study conducted on women with rheumatoid arthritis, were administered a constant dose of quercetin(500mg/day) for a duration of 8 weeks or so. Quercetin supplementation reduced early morning stiffness associated with rheumatoid arthritis. Factors responsible for inflammation were also suppressed," she provides.

"When a large amount of ROS (reactive oxygen species) produced, which is responsible for inflammation can cause damage to tissues and organs and lead to the accumulation of the even larger amount of ROS. Primarily Quercetin, flavonol and vitamin C present in onions ameliorates several markers of inflammation thereby attenuating oxidative stress," provides the knowledgeable.

Which cooking methodology is greatest for onions

Methods of cooking corresponding to sauté and frying don't result in lack of vitamins (importantly flavonoids) however boiling can result in a 30% lack of the vitamins current in onions.