Proven Health Benefits of Garlic - "Let food be thy medicine, and medicine be thy food." Those are famous words from the ancient Greek physician Hippocrates, often called the father of Western medicine. He actually used to prescribe garlic to treat a variety of medical conditions. Modern science has recently confirmed many of these beneficial health effects. Here are 11 health benefits of garlic that are supported by human research.
Garlic Contains Compounds With Potent Medicinal Properties and is
a powerful Anti-Inflammatory agent that ameliorates arthritis and back pain.
Garlic is a plant in the Allium (onion) family.
It is closely related to onions, shallots and leeks. Each segment of a garlic bulb is called a clove. There are about 10–20 cloves in a single bulb, give or take.
Garlic grows in many parts of the world and is a popular ingredient in cooking due to its strong smell and delicious taste.
However, throughout ancient history, the main use of garlic was for its health and medicinal properties.
Its use was well documented by many major civilizations, including the Egyptians, Babylonians, Greeks, Romans and Chinese.
Scientists now know that most of its health benefits are caused by sulfur compounds formed when a garlic clove is chopped, crushed or chewed.
Perhaps the most famous of those is known as allicin. However, allicin is an unstable compound that is only briefly present in fresh garlic after it’s been cut or crushed.
Other compounds that may play a role in garlic’s health benefits include diallyl disulfide and s-allyl cysteine.
Garlic Is Highly Nutritious But Has Very Few Calories
Calorie for calorie, garlic is incredibly nutritious.
A 1-ounce (28-gram) serving of garlic contains (5):
Manganese: 23% of the RDA
Vitamin B6: 17% of the RDA
Vitamin C: 15% of the RDA
Selenium: 6% of the RDA
Fiber: 0.6 grams
Decent amounts of calcium, copper, potassium, phosphorus, iron and vitamin B1
Garlic also contains trace amounts of various other nutrients. In fact, it contains a little bit of almost everything you need.
This comes with 42 calories, 1.8 grams of protein and 9 grams of carbs.
Garlic Can Combat Sickness, Including the Common Cold
Garlic supplements are known to boost the function of the immune system.
One large, 12-week study found that a daily garlic supplement reduced the number of colds by 63% compared to a placebo.
The average length of cold symptoms was also reduced by 70%, from 5 days in the placebo group to just 1.5 days in the garlic group.
The Active Compounds in Garlic Can Reduce Blood Pressure
Cardiovascular diseases like heart attacks and strokes are the world's biggest killers.
Human studies have found garlic supplements to have a significant impact on reducing blood pressure in people with high blood pressure.
Supplement doses must be fairly high to have the desired effects. The amount needed is equivalent to about four cloves of garlic per day.
Garlic Contains Compounds With Potent Medicinal Properties and is
a powerful Anti-Inflammatory agent that ameliorates arthritis and back pain.
Garlic is a plant in the Allium (onion) family.
It is closely related to onions, shallots and leeks. Each segment of a garlic bulb is called a clove. There are about 10–20 cloves in a single bulb, give or take.
Garlic grows in many parts of the world and is a popular ingredient in cooking due to its strong smell and delicious taste.
However, throughout ancient history, the main use of garlic was for its health and medicinal properties.
Its use was well documented by many major civilizations, including the Egyptians, Babylonians, Greeks, Romans and Chinese.
Scientists now know that most of its health benefits are caused by sulfur compounds formed when a garlic clove is chopped, crushed or chewed.
Perhaps the most famous of those is known as allicin. However, allicin is an unstable compound that is only briefly present in fresh garlic after it’s been cut or crushed.
Other compounds that may play a role in garlic’s health benefits include diallyl disulfide and s-allyl cysteine.
Garlic Is Highly Nutritious But Has Very Few Calories
Calorie for calorie, garlic is incredibly nutritious.
A 1-ounce (28-gram) serving of garlic contains (5):
Manganese: 23% of the RDA
Vitamin B6: 17% of the RDA
Vitamin C: 15% of the RDA
Selenium: 6% of the RDA
Fiber: 0.6 grams
Decent amounts of calcium, copper, potassium, phosphorus, iron and vitamin B1
Garlic also contains trace amounts of various other nutrients. In fact, it contains a little bit of almost everything you need.
This comes with 42 calories, 1.8 grams of protein and 9 grams of carbs.
Garlic Can Combat Sickness, Including the Common Cold
Garlic supplements are known to boost the function of the immune system.
One large, 12-week study found that a daily garlic supplement reduced the number of colds by 63% compared to a placebo.
The average length of cold symptoms was also reduced by 70%, from 5 days in the placebo group to just 1.5 days in the garlic group.
The Active Compounds in Garlic Can Reduce Blood Pressure
Cardiovascular diseases like heart attacks and strokes are the world's biggest killers.
Human studies have found garlic supplements to have a significant impact on reducing blood pressure in people with high blood pressure.
Supplement doses must be fairly high to have the desired effects. The amount needed is equivalent to about four cloves of garlic per day.
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