10 Reasons to Take Onions with Your Hotdog

Onions are added to many cooked dishes to add extra flavor, but there is a lot more to these strong smelling members of the lily family:

1. Onions were grown in Egypt around the year 3200 BC according to ancient scrolls but these must have been cultivated long before this. It was believed that onions could cure over 8000 different body ailments including skin problems and influenza.
2. The ancient Greek, father of modern medicine, Hypocrites, prescribed onions for pneumonia, wound healing and as a diuretic.
3. Onions were grown and eaten throughout Europe during the Middle Ages. Christopher Columbus took them with him to America and they son became popular with the Native Americans.
4. During World War 11, Russian soldiers had not medical supplies, or doctors in many situations and they fell back on the old folk remedy of using a cup onion to clean and disinfect a wound.
5. The common onion that we all know is correctly known as allium cepa. Onions, shallots, leeks, chives and garlic, all belong to the family of plants and all give off alkyl sulphides which give these plants their characteristic smells.
6. The beneficial qualities of onions come from sulphur and quercitin which act as anti-oxidants. These help to neutralize free radicals in the body and protect the cell membranes from damage. Yellow and red onions contain more quercitin than white ones.
7. Onions are an excellent source of minerals. They contain potassium, phosphorus, calcium, magnesium, sodium, selenium, iron, manganese, copper and zinc. The actual quantities of minerals depend on the soil they are grown in.
8. Onion cells have separate sections containing sulphides and allinases. When the onion is cut, these mix and form a gas called syn-propenethial-s-oxide and it is this gas that makes your eyes run when you cut onions. (Cut them in water to avoid this.).
9. Onions are said to be effective against colds, heart disease and diabetes. They are also have anti-inflammatory and cholesterol lowering properties.
10. Onions and other members of the allium family have anti-bacterial and anti-fungal properties. They can be beneficial in relieving intestinal disorders and stomach upsets.