Garlic is an herb long-cherished for its nutritional value and healing properties. According to the "Journal of Nutrition," people have used garlic for medicinal purposes since antiquity. In fact, until the discovery of penicillin in 1928, many used garlic as an antibiotic. Because modern studies have shown that garlic's nutritional makeup can greatly aid the cardiovascular system, today the herb is often labeled a "heart-healthy" food. The nutritional benefits of garlic are greatest when it is eaten raw.
Anti-microbial
Garlic is a potent anti-microbial, thanks to a substance called allicin. Allicin is a sulphur compound that not actually contained within garlic, but is produced when garlic is crushed or chopped. A 1999 study published in the journal "Microbes and Infections" showed that allicin has strong anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, anti-parasitic and anti-viral properties. Other studies, notes the Mayo Clinic, have shown that garlic applied to directly to the skin can help treat various infections, including yeast infections.
Cardovascular Health
In addition to allicin, garlic contains numerous sulfur-containing compounds that act alone or together to benefit the cardiovascular system. According to the World's Healthiest Foods, these compounds lower the risk of oxidative stress, which can cause damage to the blood vessel lining and increase the possibility of vessel congestion, atherosclerosis and heart attack. Certain of these compounds, particularly ajoene, also act as a blood thinner, preventing unnecessary clotting.
Garlic is also a good source of Vitamin B6, which aids the heart by decreasing levels of homocysteine, an amino acid that, at elevated levels, can create blood clots and harden and narrow the arteries.
Antioxidant Activity
Garlic is rich in antioxidants, such as vitamin C and selenium. The two antioxidants--a water-soluble vitamin and trace mineral, respectively--help expel free radicals from the body. Free radicals are unstable oxygen molecules that can cause extensive damage to the body's cells and tissues, and are believed to promote a variety of diseases, including heart disease, asthma, diabetes and cancer.
Fat-reducer
Preliminary studies suggest that garlic might be beneficial in regulating fat cells in our bodies. According to a 2009 study published in the "Journal of Nutrition," one of garlic's sulfur compounds may be able to obstruct the conversion of pre-fat cells into full-blown fat cells through the reduction of inflammation. While the subject needs further investigation, the researchers concluded that garlic may play a role in the treatment of obesity, a condition they consider a state of low-grade inflammation.
References
- U.S. National Library of Medicine: Antimicrobial properties of allicin from garlic
- Journal of Nutrition: Is Garlic Alternative Medicine?
- The World's Healthiest Foods: Garlic
- Mayo Clinic: Garlic
- U.S. National Library of Medicine: The Role of Free Radicals in Disease
- Journal of Nutrition: 1,2-Vinyldithiin from Garlic Inhibits Differentiation and Inflammation of Human Preadipocytes
Member Comments