EFFECT OF THE ONIONS ON CARDIOVASCULAR RISK FACTORS

Abstract

Background: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors cause high morbidity and mortality incidence among people worldwide.
The study's aim was to review the effect of onion consumption on cardiovascular disease risk factors.
Methodology: Health datasets were revised through Up-To-Date, Medline, Web of Science, Cochrane, CDC, WHO, Google Scholar, Scopus, and PubMed. To search for evidence, based on the benefit of Onion used for reduction of cardiovascular risk factors such as hypertension, hyperlipidemia, diabetes, smoking, obesity especially abdominal obesity among participants. The data analyzed before and post-intervention for these parameters was based on their objectives of daily consumption of different types of onions for a specific period.
The result: Several meta-analysis studies revealed that consumption of onions 60 grams or 300 mg daily for three months significantly reduced body cholesterol, waist circumference, body mass index, and increased fibrinolytic activity. Also, the consumption of different forms of onions fresh yellow, cooked onion, peel extract, juice, aqueous extract, powder, or oil for eight weeks significantly led to a reduction in fasting blood glucose among both types of diabetes participants that can be reflected in antidiabetic effects of onions. Some phytochemicals effect for prehypertensive participants consumed 2.5g of fresh onion immersed in olive oil significantly decreased systolic and diastolic blood pressure after 5 hours by 10 and 8 mm/ Hg, respectively, and consumption of 100 mg/kg body weight of onion oil for 21 days by rats who injected with nicotine reflected an antioxidant effect of onions' oil against the oxidative damage caused by nicotine.
Conclusion:
Finally, consumption 60 -100 g/kg/body wt. /daily from different forms of onions for minimum period two weeks up to twelve weeks led to reduction of cardiovascular risk factors.