Humans have used garlic as a flavoring agent and for its medicinal properties for thousands of years. It is not rare to find a delicious dish, getting all its flavor from garlic. It happens to be one of the most common ingredients in kitchens all over the world. Eaten raw garlic has a rather pungent flavor it mellows down once cooked. Science developed in more recent times, the health benefits of garlic began to be verified and confirmed. Interestingly many people who did not use garlic in their kitchens, began to add this healthy herb to their food dishes. We talk about garlic and the health benefits that it offers in this report. We would suggest that you read this report and discuss your ideas with a doctor if, you find something that is relevant to your health. Do not try to treat yourself and do not make any modifications to the medications (if any) that you are currently taking.
Heart Health: Atherosclerosis is a condition where the arteries get hardened, this a condition that invariably leads to heart related ailments. Regular consumption of garlic is likely to slow down the development of atherosclerosis. While research into the ability of garlic to lower cholesterol is still in progress, some studies do seem to confirm this. The ability of garlic to reduce strokes and heart attacks, possibly stems from initial findings that, garlic acts as a blood thinner.
Common Cold: This is surely not a very serious element but, the common cold can cause discomfort and stop you from performing daily routines. Several studies have found that, garlic reduces the chances of catching a common cold. And for garlic eaters who did get a cold, recovery was much faster as compared to those who where given other herbs / medications.
Cancer Prevention: This is one disease that has baffled medical researchers across the world. While you should not jump to conclusions about garlic and cancer, research that is ongoing seems to be giving positive findings. It is said that Egyptians building the pyramids were given garlic to make them stronger. Current studies seem to conclude that garlic can improve overall health and enhance immunity. This was probably what the Egyptians experienced thousands of years ago. Improved immunity can help ward off a number of diseases including, cancer. Keep in mind that diagnosing and treating cancer is a complicated and often, prolonged process. Always seek and rely on professional medical advice when it comes to cancer.
Tips And Caution: Eating raw garlic is known to cause acidity in few people. If you happen to be one of those people, try to introduce garlic into your cooking. Garlic is known to contain ingredients that can cause acidity however, it is these very ingredients that deliver some vital health benefits. Heating the herb lowers the possibility of excess acidity being released into the stomach. We did mention above that, many of the health benefits of garlic are still being researched. The initial reports of many studies seem to confirm several health benefits of garlic. Experts are taking the medicinal properties of garlic very seriously. If you happen to be taking prescribed medications to lower cholesterol or blood pressure, any plan to include garlic in your diet regularly should be discussed with your doctor. The blood thinning properties of garlic could reduce the chances of getting a stroke or heart attack. People on blood thinning medications, should talk to their doctor before, beginning a regular intake of garlic.
Supplements: You will come across a number of herbal supplements that utilize garlic as a major ingredient. Variations do exist and some focus on extracting allicin from garlic. Many experts are of the opinion that, allicin is the ingredient on garlic that holds all these (and more) health benefits. Before you begin taking any garlic based supplement, make sure that you read the above paragraph on 'Tips And Caution'. Pregnant women, children and people scheduled to have any surgical process, should not take garlic supplements.