Is it healthier to eat onions raw or cooked?

Eating onions raw and cooked have their own health benefits. The following is a specific analysis:

1. Health advantages of eating onions raw

– Retain more nutrients: Onions are rich in vitamin C, B vitamins, dietary fiber, and various minerals. These nutrients can be retained to the greatest extent when eaten raw, which can better supplement various nutrients for the human body and play a positive role in the body.

– Rich in prebiotics: Raw onions contain prebiotic ingredients such as inulin, which help regulate intestinal flora, promote the growth and reproduction of beneficial bacteria, and thus improve intestinal health, enhance intestinal digestion and absorption functions, and have a positive significance for maintaining intestinal microecological balance.

– Has bactericidal and anti-inflammatory effects: Raw onions contain sulfur compounds such as allicin, flavonoids and other natural antioxidant ingredients with strong antibacterial and anti-inflammatory capabilities, which can inhibit the growth of harmful bacteria and have a certain relief and prevention effect on some inflammations in the oral cavity, gastrointestinal tract and other parts.

2. Health advantages of eating cooked onions

– Better for nutrient absorption: Although eating cooked onions will lose some heat-sensitive nutrients such as vitamin C, some nutrients in onions, such as flavonoids such as quercetin contained in onions, change their structure after heating and cooking, and become easier to be absorbed and utilized by the human body, so as to better play the role of anti-oxidation and prevention of cardiovascular diseases.

– Reduce irritation: Raw onions are spicy and pungent, and are highly irritating to the gastrointestinal tract, while eating cooked onions can greatly reduce the spiciness of onions. For those with weak gastrointestinal function and those who cannot accept the irritation of raw onions, eating cooked onions is more acceptable, reducing the probability of gastrointestinal discomfort after eating.

In general, it cannot be simply determined whether eating raw or cooked onions is healthier. You can choose the appropriate way of eating according to personal taste preferences, gastrointestinal conditions, and health needs. For example, if you want to obtain more prebiotics to regulate intestinal flora, and your stomach and intestines can accept its spicy stimulation, you can choose to eat it raw; if you want to reduce irritation to the stomach and intestines, and want to better absorb some of the antioxidant ingredients, then eating it cooked would be a good choice.