Garlic is a vegetable and is a species of the onion kind. Garlic is frequently used to add flavor to recipes and dishes. On the other hand, garlic can also be used as a medicine to prevent or treat a large range of aliments and diseases. Garlic cloves have many very important nutrients including vitamins, amino acids, and enzymes. Garlic contains sulfur compound from the amino acid allicin, which is most noted for producing garlic’s great odor.
Why You Should Eat Garlic Raw
When the garlic is cooked this prohibits the garlic’s ability to make allicin. Allicin is one of the main components of garlic that gives it its health and Well Being benefits, including the power to prevent cancer. Allicin is produced in garlic when the garlic enzyme alliinase is sever or chewed. Though, when the garlic is cooked alliinase is then inactivated which causes allicin to not be produced.
Garlic Is Highly Nutritious
Calorie for calorie, garlic is very nutritious.
A 1 ounce serving of garlic contains
- Fiber: 0.6 gram.
- Vitamin B6: 17% of the RDA
- Vitamin C: 15% of the RDA
- Manganese: 23% of the RDA
- Selenium: 6% of the RDA
- Decent amounts of calcium, potassium, copper, phosphorus, iron and vitamin B1.
Garlic also contains trace amount of various other nutrients. In fact, it contains a small piece of almost everything we need. This is coming with 42 calories, with 1.8 grams of protein and 9 grams of carbs.
Garlic Can Combat Sickness
Garlic supplementation is known to improve 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 with placebo.
- The normal length of cold symptoms was also reduced by 70%, from 5 days in placebo to just 1.5 days in the garlic group.
- Another study found that a high dose of garlic extract can decrease the number of days sick with cold or flu by 61%.
- If you often get colds, then addition garlic to your diet could be extremely helpful.
Garlic Can Reduce Blood Pressure
Cardiovascular diseases like heart attacks and strokes are the world’s largest killers.
- High blood pressure, or hypertension, is one of the most imperative drivers of these diseases.
- Human studies have found garlic supplementation to have an important impact on reducing blood pressure in people with high blood pressure.
- In one study, aged garlic extract at doses of 600-1,500 mg was just as helpful as the drug Atenolol at dropping blood pressure over a 24 week period.
Supplement doses must be rather high to have these preferred effects. The quantity of allicin needed is equal to about four cloves of garlic per day and its important role in Physical Well Being.
Garlic Improves Cholesterol Levels
Garlic can lower Total and LDL cholesterol and overall well being.
- For those with high cholesterol, garlic supplementation appears to decrease total and/or LDL cholesterol by about 10-15%
- Looking at LDL and HDL cholesterol particularly, garlic appears to lower LDL but has no consistent effect on HDL.
- Garlic does not appear to lower triglyceride levels, any more known risk factor for heart disease.
Garlic Contains Antioxidants
- Oxidative damage from free radicals contributes to the aging process.
- Garlic contains antioxidants that support the body’s protective mechanisms against oxidative damage.
- High doses of garlic supplements have been shown to boost antioxidant enzymes in humans as well as extensively reduce oxidative stress in those with high blood pressure.
- The combined effects on reducing cholesterol and blood pressure, as well as the antioxidant properties, may help prevent common brain diseases like Alzheimer’s disease and dementia.
Garlic May Help You Live Longer
Effects on long life are mostly impossible to prove in humans.
But given the helpful effects on imperative risk factors like blood pressure, it makes sense that garlic could help you live longer.
The fact that it can fight infectious disease is also an imperative factor, because these are regular causes of death, particularly in the old or people with dysfunctional immune systems.
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By : Natural Health News
