A red onion a day keeps heart disease away

According to scientists the humble red onion could help prevent heart disease.

They have discovered that the vegetable - commonly used in Mediterranean and Indian cuisine is instrumental in removing bad cholesterol, which can cause heart attacks and strokes, from the body.

But the vegetable's health benefits do not stop at that, it also plays a vital role retaining good cholesterol, which help protect against heart disease, in the body.

Scientists in Hong Kong fed hamster who had been placed on a high-cholesterol diet with crushed onions.

They found that after eight weeks, bad cholesterol levels, or low density lipoprotein (LDL) levels in their, had fallen an average of 20 per cent.

However, the high density cholesterol levels of hamsters showed no change.