We readily admit that we don’t know everything there is to know about health. That’s why we are always researching different trends to separate hype from science. Someone recently asked us if onion juice was good for health. And our response was, “Come again?”

Onions are undoubtedly good for health. But, drinking onion juice is relatively new and niche, to the point where no one on our team had even heard about it. Instead of trying to pontificate an answer, we started reading. We always endeavor to give people thorough answers rather than just intuit a good guess.

Onions themselves are a great vegetable. They are packed with nutrients, vitamins and minerals. Vitamin C boosts your immune system, and B vitamins can aid red blood cell production, nerve health and metabolism. They are also a good source of potassium while only having 44 calories in a medium onion. Rich with antioxidants, they aid the heart and lower cholesterol. Allium found in onions can reduce your risk of stomach cancer. One big perk of the vegetable is that onions help blood sugar levels. Rats fed onions had lower fasting blood sugar and lower body fat. Onions also aid bone density.

So, what about onion juice? What gives us our first pause, right from the word go, is that any juice lacks the fiber of whatever fruit or veggie it came from. An onion has 9.9 grams of carbs and 1.7 grams of fiber. Fiber slows your digestion of carbohydrates and prevents blood sugar spikes. Some recipes for the juice do keep the fiber, one suggests blending half an onion with a tablespoon of honey. All that does is add sugar. There is no difference between that and adding half an onion to a salad — except the added sugar. Another recipe calls for grating the onion and then passing it through a sieve and adding lemon juice or salt to make it more palatable.

Additionally, people say that rubbing it on your skin and hair can help fight acne and make hair stronger. Some health professionals agree, others say it’s codswallop. Our opinion is that it’s going to make your hair smell and possibly give you a rash because onion can be caustic to skin.

In the end, we say give onion juice a pass. If you like the flavor, that’s one thing. But, without fiber, it can increase blood sugar. And the benefits of drinking it are the same as eating the vegetable. Onions are so easy to add to your diet, both raw and cooked. Adding them to most other vegetable dishes punches up the flavor. They go well with meat, are tasty in soup, necessary in most savory casseroles and excellent in salads! Don’t bother with drinking them, enjoy them without a juicer!