Garlic’s Dietary Value and Medicinal Uses

Though it may have a reputation for causing bad breath, garlic has some potent health benefits that have been utilized for thousands of years. It’s believed that garlic was used as far back as 5,000 years ago in India while the Chinese used garlic as far back as 3,000 years for medicinal purposes.

Today, fresh, uncooked garlic is still essential in any diet or nutritional health plan. Full of vitamins B and C, and contains the minerals selenium, iodine, potassium, iron, calcium, zinc and magnesium – it’s no wonder that this herb has been used for so long to help keep our bodies healthy.

Medicinally, it’s been said that garlic has helped cure everything from the Plague to the flu to the common cold. While it’s impossible to know for sure what garlic’s role may have been during the Plague, what we do know is that garlic contains antibiotic properties that help us fight off harmful bacteria. It’s these antibiotic properties that can help fight off the flu and common cold.

Eat more garlic and you’ll not only fight off diseases, but research has shown you’ll also have a healthier heart and lower blood pressure. Because garlic thins the blood, like aspirin, tests with garlic supplements demonstrated a substantial reduction in blood pressure, otherwise known as “hypertension”. And when you lower hypertension, you can also lower your risk of heart disease and stroke.

As if providing you with essential vitamins and minerals and helping keep your heart healthy isn’t enough, garlic has even a few more tricks up its sleeves. It can help prevent cancer with its antioxidant properties that kill off free radicals that can damage our cells and cause cancer. If you’re having skin trouble, garlic can help by aiding in the reduction of acne. Garlic has often been added to creams and other treatments for acne in the past. Because eating garlic adds antibiotic effects to your body by cleansing the blood, this in turn helps reduce underlying causes of acne and improves skin.

What is it that makes garlic such a powerful and healthy herb? Scientists have discovered that it’s a compound called allicin that’s released when you crush garlic to cook with or chew it. It’s this compound that makes garlic a must-add to any diet for better health.

So, now that we can see that fresh garlic has many wonderful health benefits, it’s good to eat garlic in moderation, since too much at one time can irritate your digestive system. With this in mind, grab your garlic press and add garlic to your next salad, your favorite Eastern dish or really just about any dish or meat that will come alive with flavor and healthy potency.