While type 2 diabetes cannot be cured or reversed, there are several ways to manage the condition – including taking medication to control your blood sugar levels. However, according to doctors, you also need to make changes in your lifestyle which includes regular exercise and eating a healthy diet.

A ground-breaking study has revealed that a common vegetable can help reduce high blood sugar levels by half. You can get type 2 diabetes when your pancreas fails to produce enough insulin to control blood sugar levels – or the body’s cells do not use the insulin produced.

How does onion keep blood sugar levels low?

Insulin is important for controlling blood sugar – the main type of sugar found in our blood. Without this control, blood sugar levels can rise to dangerous heights.

And so, with the hope of finding a permanent solution, researchers at Delta State University in Nigeria have revealed that extracts from onion bulbs – known as Allium cepa, can help prevent diabetes when given along with the anti-diabetes drug metformin. Significantly reduces high blood sugar in rats. ,

“Onion is cheap and readily available and is used as a nutritional supplement,” said principal investigator Dr. Anthony Ojih of Delta State University in Abraka, Nigeria. “It has the potential to be used in the treatment of diabetic patients,” he said.

How was the study conducted?

According to Dr. Ojih, the research team gave three groups of rats with medically induced diabetes different doses of metformin and onion extract – 200 mg, 1000 mg – to find out whether it could enhance the effect of the drug. 400 mg and 600 mg per kilogram of body weight given daily. , For comparison, three groups of non-diabetic rats with normal blood sugar levels were also given metformin and onion extract.

However, two control groups – one non-diabetic and one diabetic, did not receive metformin or onion extract. Similarly, the other two groups – one with diabetes and one without diabetes, were given only metformin and no onion extract. There were five rats in each group.

The researchers found that onion extract – at doses of 400 mg and 600 mg, reduced fasting blood sugar levels in diabetic rats by 50 percent and 35 percent, respectively, compared to their baseline levels. However, onion extract increased the average weight in non-diabetic rats, but not in diabetic rats. “Onions are not high in calories,” Dr. Ojih said. However, it appears to increase metabolic rate as well as appetite, leading to increased food intake.”

“We need to investigate the mechanism by which onions caused the reduction in blood sugar. We don’t have an explanation yet,” he said.

The team now plans to use a pure version of onion extract – made from common onion bulbs found in supermarkets. However, it is not known when the trial will begin.

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