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Study: Red Onions Kill Cancer Cells

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – You got to have onions to kill cancer cells, red onions specifically, a new study finds.

During the experiment, Abdulmonem Murayyan and his researchers at the University of Guelph put colon cancer cells in direct contact with quercetin from five different onions and they realized Ruby Ring onions, especially ones grown in Ontario, are the most effective in destroying cancer cells.

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"Anthocyanin is instrumental in providing color to fruits and vegetables, so it makes sense that the red onions, which are darkest in color, would have the most cancer-fighting power," Murayyan, the study's lead author and doctoral student at the university, said in a statement.

Murayyan added, "Onions activate pathways that encourage cancer cells to undergo cell death. They promote an unfavorable environment for cancer cells and they disrupt communication between cancer cells, which inhibits growth."

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The study also found concluded vegetables excel at destroying breast cancer cells.

The next step is to test the red onions abilities via human trials, Murayyan said.

The findings of the onion experiments are available in Food Research International.

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