Garlic had reigned for thousands of years as a medical treatment plant in different ancient cultures, before it became a very important flavor spice in the kitchen, used for dishes. The medical benefits were effectively deployed by Romans, Chinese, Egyptians and other ancient cultures.
Garlic is a powerful detox food that promotes glutathione production by various liver enzymes. It also provides other important detoxifying components, including multiple bioactive selenium and sulfur compounds. It has been shown to boost the immune system and reduce the severity of cold and flu symptoms.
According to cancer.gov, garlic can help reduce the risk of certain types of cancer, including colorectal and stomach cancer.
Garlic consumption has been shown to have numerous fantastic health benefits for the body. Let’s look at the most crucial health advantages of garlic.
Why is Garlic Healthy For You?
Though it was not widely known, experts now understand that sulfur compounds in garlic are the primary cause of its beneficial effects on health.
By slicing, chopping, or crushing garlic bulbs, the thio-Sulfinite chemicals in them are converted into allicin. Allicin is a fantastic substance.
However, while this appears to be true in theory, what are the actual health benefits of using garlic?
1. Wards Off Cough and Cold
Raw garlic has the potential to ward off cough and cold infections. Eating two crushed garlic cloves on an empty stomach has the maximum benefit. For kids and babies, hanging garlic cloves in a thread around their necks is supposed to relieve congestion symptoms.
2. Boost Your Body’s Immune System
Your body’s immunity is what keeps it from getting sick in the first place, and it also aids in the fight against illness when the situation calls for it. Garlic offers an immune system boost to help prevent colds and the flu virus.
Children get six to eight colds each year, while adults get two to four. Eating raw garlic can protect against cough, fever, and cold illnesses.
Eating two chopped garlic cloves every day is the best way to benefit. In some households around the world, families hang garlic cloves on a string around their childrens’ necks to help them with congestion.
3. Improves Brain Functioning
Garlic promotes brain health because of its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. It is effective against neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s and dementia. Also, read more on the best brain foods to include in your diet.
4. Garlic Helps Reduce High Blood Pressure
Strokes and heart attacks are two of the most significant health concerns worldwide. High blood pressure is a considerable risk factor for heart disease. It’s thought to cause about 70% of strokes, heart attacks, and chronic heart failure. High blood pressure is the cause of 13.5 percent of deaths worldwide.
Because they are among the significant causes of death, addressing one of their primary causes, high blood pressure, is extremely important.
Garlic is a fantastic spice to include in your diet for those suffering from high blood pressure or hypertension.
However, even if you are not a lover of garlic, taking garlic supplements will still give you the health benefits such as lowering high blood pressure, treating fever, and many more.
Keep in mind that you must make sure that the amount of these supplements you take is the same as four cloves of garlic each day. Be sure to talk to your doctor before you start taking any supplements.
5. Garlic Helps Reduce Cholesterol Levels
Cholesterol is a fatty component in the blood. There are two kinds of cholesterol: “bad” LDL cholesterol and “good” HDL cholesterol. Far too much LDL cholesterol and not enough HDL cholesterol can cause serious health issues.
Garlic has been shown to lower total cholesterol and LDL levels by 10 to 15 percent.
Furthermore, eating garlic does not influence your HDL or good cholesterol levels. If you have a family history of heart disease or suffer from heart disease, you should consider adding garlic to your diet.
6. Garlic Can Help With Prevention of Cancer
Garlic’s health benefits do not end with the heart. So here is another reason why your body can benefit from an extra dose of this onion family member.
According to research, consuming fresh garlic can help lessen the risk of colon cancer. According to the Iowa Women’s Health Study, women who ate garlic regularly with other vegetables and fruits had a 35% lower chance of getting colon cancer. However, researchers agree that more studies are still needed in this area.
7. Garlic Has Antibiotic Properties
Garlic contains allicin. Allicin is a bioactive antibiotic that can help fight infections and bacteria in sliced, squashed, or diced cloves. Garlic extracts have been shown to suppress the growth of:
Allicin is believed to be a viable antibiotic replacement. It also assists when used in conjunction with conventional prescribed antibiotics.
8. Garlic May Prevent Alzheimer’s and Dementia
Garlic has high antioxidants, which help prevent any oxidative damage from occurring in your body. These antioxidant properties can help prevent certain cognitive diseases like dementia and Alzheimer’s. However, take this one with a pinch of garlic. Taking high doses of garlic supplements, however, does not mean that you will be immune to the disease. The medicinal properties of garlic can only improve health to a certain point.
9. Garlic Can Improve Athletic Performance
This ingredient is one of the earliest performance enhancers available. Garlic was used in the olden days to alleviate weariness and boost laborers’ working hours and endurance. It was also fed to Greek Olympic athletes to boost their athletic performance.
10. Improves Digestion
Digestive problems improve with the inclusion of raw garlic in the diet. It benefits the intestines and reduces inflammation. Eating raw garlic helps to clear out intestinal worms. The good thing is that it destroys the bad bacteria and protects the good bacteria in the gut.
Therefore, having considered the numerous important health benefits of garlic, whether raw or taken as a supplement, you can take the first step to a healthier, better you.
