Onion health benefits

Onion is popular vegetable known for its taste as well as for its strong odor. Contents of onion bulb makes it medicinally useful for simple to complicated conditions. It contains Vitamin C, calcium iron, dietary fiber and no fat. Presence of organosulfur compounds makes onion produce unique pungent odor. It also contains flavonoids called quercetin that acts as an anti-inflammatory drug. Phosphorous content of onion is also high.  Onion can be used alone or with other herbs to get its benefit. Apart from using it as an ingredient in cooking, use onion as a medicinal herb for different conditions. It is one of the readily available herbs, that can be used for various health issues. Here are uses and ways to use onion.

For cough:

• Smash one medium size onion and a piece of jaggery. Collect the juice and drink to control cough.
• Mix onion juice (1 tsp) with 1 tsp honey and consume

For detoxification: Eating onion detoxifies the body and improves digestion

For scabies: Apply turmeric powder paste prepared in onion juice  Apply it as needed and it reduces the scabies

Headache: When you have normal headache, rub half cut onion on forehead! Don’t apply near eyes as it causes burning or smell onion at few minutes interval. It also reduces cold.

Hair care:

• Do you know? Applying onion juice for hair root reduces hair fall.
• Mix henna, lemon juice and little onion juice – prepare a paste and apply on hair to get smooth hair.
• To get rid of lice in hair- apply onion juice at night and cover hair with a thin cloth. Wash hair in the morning. Onion smell helps to get rid of the unwanted insect.

For toothache:

• keep onion piece in mouth. Mix clove oil and onion juice.
• Dip a cotton ball in the mix and place it on tooth that is causing pain.

For stomach problems: like pain, indigestion

• Burn onion and eat with ghee.
• Burn onion and eat with jaggery
• Eat one small onion with yogurt rice

For loose motion and vomiting problem:

• For one Tsp onion juice, add ½ Tsp honey and drink 2-3 times a day.
• Mix equal amount of lemon and onion juice and drink ( start with 1 tsp each and increase to 2 or 3 tsp)

For piles:

• Consuming onion juice with yogurt and honey reduces piles.
• For ¼ cup onion juice, add 1 Tsp rock sugar and drink 2 to 3 times a day. It also reduces pile problem.

For sleep:

• Have one small onion with supper/dinner. Onion helps to reduce heaviness and supports digestion and good sleep
• Place thin slice of onion under feet and wear a think sock. This is an ancient remedy for insomnia as well as for flu (Onion properties stimulates body meridians and reaches different organs causing detoxification). Get rid of the used onion slice once you wake up in the morning.

For blood sugar: Onion is good for diabetes patients. Presence of organosulfur helps to reduce sugar level. Eating onion helps to purify the blood. Like garlic, onion helps to reduce the triglyceride, bad cholesterol and promotes heart health.

Insect bites: If you get stung by bee or ants, apply onion juice or rub cut onion where you are experiencing pain. It not only reduces pain, reduces soreness too!

If you eat onion at night, make sure you brush the teeth to avoid the bad odor that results in bad breath. Onion bulbs are good for overall health. If you are not a fan of onion, then probably this is time to start appreciating the goodness of this wonderful herb!