Botanical Name 

Allium cepa

Family 

Liliaceae

Parts Used 

Bulb

Energetics 

Warming, moistening

Taste 

Raw: Pungent. Cooked:Sweet.

Historical & Modern Plant Uses 

Abscesses, acne, allergies, anti-cancer, anti-fungal (including athlete’s foot), anti-histamine, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, anti-septic, anti-spasmodic, aphrodisiac, arthritic and rheumatic pains, asthma, atherosclerosis

Baldness, blood sugar and blood lipid reduction, blood thinner and platelet inhibitor, bites, boils, bronchitis, burns

Calluses, cardiovascular health, colds, colic, convulsions, coughs, croup

Delayed menses, diuretic, dropsy, dyspepsia

Earache and ear infection, epilepsy, expectorant

Fever, Flu

Gas, gravel

Headache, hypertension

Inactivate the harmful effects of chelate metal ions, insect repellent, insomnia

Jaundice

Lymph (inflammation and swelling)

Malarial fevers

Osteoporosis

Plague, pneumonia

Scurvy, sinuses, skin beautifier (wrinkles, crowsfeet and bags under the eyes), sore throat, spleen enlargement, stings, strep throat, stroke

Toothache (prevention), tumors

Ulcers

Vermifuge, vulnerary

Warts, whooping cough

PlantPreparations 

Food, honey, oxymel, poultice, powder, syrup, vinegar

Onion for Coughs 

As a graduate from The School of Natural Healing, founded in1953 by Dr. John Raymond Christopher, one of the first medicinal plants I learned about was the onion poultice that saved baby Ray when critically ill with croup and its characteristic dry, barking cough.

Later in life Dr. Christopher went on to use onions successfully to treat persistent coughs like bronchitis and more dangerous acute lung infections like whooping cough and pneumonia.

Onions cut or thin-out phlegm which helps a person to expectorate the mucus; they’re warming and demulcent while also being a stimulating expectorant.

I used onion poultices successfully on my sons when they used to get croup in the late 1990’s through the early 2000’s. At the time I did not realize how dairy was affecting my boys’ lungs, but eventually I discovered the pattern of lung issues dairy caused for my kids and stopped using it.

My experiences with onions as poultices, broths, or syrups have been quite successful. I used onion poultices on myself over a decade ago when it felt painful to breathe. The warm poultices felt very soothing and calming to my pained lungs all those years ago; I was able to sleep quite well
and woke up feeling much improved. During a different season, about 4 years ago, I had a thick, stuck, and disgusting cough and just a little onion broth opened that right up!

The “Honion Syrup” recipe to follow tastes delicious and soothes a dry cough as well. Raw buckwheat honey was shown in studies to be even more effective for children’scough than over-the-counter cough syrups (and much safer)!

Onions contain sulfur compounds that pathogens and cancer cells cannot survive, however those sulfur compounds and antioxidants (along with many other plant constituents) support cardiovascular and lung health.

Onion for Earache & Ear Infection 

Dr. Christopher taught his students and clients to lightly bake an onion, cut it in half, and while still warm (but not hot) bind one half the onion over each ear with a nightcap (beanie) and leave it on all night. He didn’t say this, but to perhaps avoid skin irritation, we could rub on some coconut or olive oil. Some people prefer to use petroleum jelly.

There have been many reports of alleviating earache and infection by simply cutting a raw onion in half then leaving the halves out overnight near the bedside.

A few years ago, I wrote an extensive, but fun 😉 article on treating ear infections naturally with various herbs, recipes, and applications. Garlic oil is the first thing I turn to for ear infections!

You can read more about that in my blog:

Spiritual Symbolism of Onions

Onion Spirit shows us that within our core is our innate drive for new growth and expansion. Let’s not forget that as our layers upon layers of protection are peeled away.  Even while we feel buried under the earth in darkness, at our center we can sense when it’s our season to sprout and work our way up into the light once again. 

Onion Spirit is gentler and more soothing than its purely pungent relative, Garlic Spirit, but powerfully effective in his own right at supporting our awakening. Awakening is avulnerable, humbling process.

Our Soul’s awakening is the stripping away of our long-held, human-made beliefs that have protected us all this time. But now, something has happened. Something shifted and now we know to our core that it’s time to wake up and reach for the light.

Waking up can really sting and burn and make us cry, as onions tend to do, but it’s opening us up to truly see and be able to breathe in the Truth of where real joy and peace comes from… with the incredible realization that no one can ever take that away from us now that we Know the Truth.

Onion is the Spirit who gladly helps us gently remove the layers one at a time. Garlic is theSpirit who helps us when Life demolishes our Defensive Tower all at once, or we decide to do so because the constant cycle of suffering is no longer tolerable. The choice is ours. Or we can, of course, call on them both.

Onion Spirit thins blockages and kills our inner Thought-Villains. Thought-Villains are simplyThought-Errors. They show up as our need to control that which obstructs our ability to breathe freely which also increases our internal pressures because… we’re stuck in a loop of trying to control the Universe! Thought-Villains are the errors in our thinking that make it impossible to digest life properly, to accurately break down events and circumstances so that we can effectively assimilate and discern what to integrate and what to expel… what is useful and nurturing vs what is destructive and not useful.

We might mistakenly shame ourselves in this humbling process of breaking down our Thought-Errors that we thought were keeping us safe in some way because now we’re waking up to see that these Thought-Errors are actually creating stress hormones that are putting our physical health in danger. Onion Spirit’s demulcent nature is here to soothe our souls and release the self-shaming Thought-Errors right along with the rest of ‘em. We will experience our minds enlightening to a new perspective of ourselves and eventually every relationship. This is exactly how our obstacles are expelled.

We see that Onion Spirit is highly supportive to our lungs which shows us how masterfully Onion Spirit can help us separate our true grief and sorrow from our anger and fear so that our Soul Personality can breathe freely without obstruction.

Onion Spirit can help us be Soul-y authentic, powerful, open, and free by assisting us to remove ourselves more smoothly and gently from our self-elevated position of justification and arrogance, our position of “better than,” and expelling our belief that we’re the victim to other people
and Life. Onion Spirit stimulates ou rinternal heat and warms us up to Life again, dispelling any lingering inner chill from the past.

When we look at all the physical benefits of onion to our body’s systems, we know that all the layers of Onion Spirit can literally help us benefit every aspect and layer of our lives. The eternal nature of our Soul resides in the core of Onion Spirit; every outer layer we allow ourselves to peel away brings us closer to ourselves and our Source.

As onions and garlic do emanate a strong scent… some people may be repelled by our new Presence. It is not required for everyone in our lives to appreciate nor understand us. We may feel socially unacceptable in our current social network. We may feel humbled and alone. This is the perfect set-up for our Soul’s continued growth, transformation, and expansion.

This is the perfect opportunity to dig deep and develop our relationships with our Angels, our Guides, our elevated Ancestors, and our Plant Relative, Onion Spirit, who are always with us.

Now is the time to practice ritual and devotion. Now is the time to deepen meditation. Now is the time to consciously practice ourThought Work. Now is the time to practice living in our new mind, our new awareness, our new way of thinking, our new body and life.

Now is the time to practice approaching circumstances with our new, fresh eyes that Onion Spirit cleared up with us.

Although we may be able to keep this awakening process between us and Spirit, we certainly don’t have to! If we were meant to do everything alone then we would be on a planet all alone! ;D Obviously, that’s not the case here. So, if we feel Guided to find support from a skilled coach or shamanic practitioner, we have complete power and freedom to do so.

Here are some thoughts and prayers I personally keep in my mind and heart: 

“Thank You, Spirit, for reminding me of Your Presence; itfeels so good to know You are here.”

“Thank You, Spirit, for granting me a miracle in my mind;your Light heals me under Grace in Perfect Ways.”

“Thank You, Spirit, for helping me vaporize myThought-Errors with lovingkindness and self-compassion.”

“Thank You, Spirit, for reminding me that I am the Keeper ofmy mind and body; I am safe and free.”

Onion Constituents 

Fructans (maintain gastrointestinal health by sustaining beneficial bacteria), Vitamins A, B and C, Quercetin (2x’s that from tea, and more than 3x’s that from apples), fiber, folic acid, calcium, iron, phosphorus, potassium, protein (high ratio of mg amino acid/gram protein), low sodium, no
fat or cholesterol, disulfides, trisulfides, cepaene, vinyl dithiins (sulfur compounds that are anticancer and antimicrobial while also reducing symptoms of diabetes mellitus and preventing inflammatory processes of asthma), silicin, enzymes and more…

Historically, the ancient cultures of Egypt, India and China revered onions and used them as food and medicine. Onions have been cultivated for 5,000 years or more, although our predecessors most likely ate wild onions long before the written word.

The Christian bible mentions the cravings for onions, leeks, and garlic in the days of Moses. Throughout 1-200 A.D., Columella, Pliny, Dioscorides, and Galen wrote of the culinary and medicinal benefits of Allium cepa.

Many stories have been told of the saving graces of onion and garlic during the Middle Ages to prevent the plague.

More modern studies have been reported through the decades up through 2019 thus far.

If you want to learn a little more about the history of onions:

*It’s suggested that adults eat an onion per day or 35 pounds per year to prevent diseases, preferably gently cooked.

Special Considerations 

Some people are sensitive to onions. As with any food allergy or sensitivity, don’t use them if you have a negative reaction to them.

Related Plants 

Chives, garlic, leeks, shallots, and more all have similar medicinal activity.

If you'd like a *free printable PDF of this blog which includes 3 medicinal recipes and proper dosages for all ages, just click the link below:

Disclaimer:The herbal and plant information in this blog is for educational purposes only. The information within this blog is not intended as a substitute for the advice provided by your physician or other medical professional. If you have or suspect that you have a serious health problem, promptly contact your health care provider. Always consult with a health care practitioner before using any herbal remedy or food, especially if pregnant, nursing, or have a medical condition.