An onion a day could help
keep osteoporosis (inflammation
of bone and cartilage) at bay,
claims a new study. When male rats were fed one gramme of dry onion per day, bone resorption -- the process in which calcium is released from bone stores, thereby weakening the bones -- was inhibited by 20 per cent. That
was slightly higher than the effect
of calcitonin at doses used to
treat osteoporosis in women
past menopause. Because osteoporosis occurs most frequently in post-menopausal women, the researchers performed the same experiments on rats with their ovaries removed.
In these rats, bone resorption was 32 per cent higher than
the normal rat but also was inhibited by onion intake. In addition to a moderate intake of dairy products or a calcium supplement, the diet should include a good mix of vegetables, especially onions. Once the effects have
been confirmed in humans, it will
be possible to slow down bone
loss and, ultimately, reduce the incidence of osteoporosis, say
the researchers (Nature, Vol 401,
No 6751).
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