GARLIC; THE SUPER FOOD AND ITS HEALTH BENEFITS

Garlic is one of the most valuable and versatile foods on the planet. Garlic belongs to the Allium family of vegetables which also includes onions, chives, shallots and leeks. The active component in garlic is the sulphur compound called allicin.
Garlic has been used throughout recorded history for both medicinal and culinary purposes, garlic is divided into sections called cloves.
                                           NUTRIENTS IN GARLIC:
– garlic contains allicin: allicin works to relax nerve cells that constrict blood flow.
– Vitamin C: Vitamin C in garlic is an antioxidant that fights free radicals
– B6 in garlic – prevents heart disease by lowering levels of homyscusteine. homocysteine can directly damage blood vessels.
– Selenium in garlic helps to fight cancer and heavy metal toxicity by working with Vitamin E to act as an antioxidant in the areas of the body containing fatty acids.
– Manganese in garlic help in building antioxidants in the body
– Allicin in garlic not only relaxes blood vessels but also acts as an anti-bacterial and antiviral agent. It has been shown to kill many harmful microbes including cold virus, stomach flu and to a limited degree tuberculosis.
– The bulbs are excellent sources of calcium, phosphorus, copper, B1, as well as carotenoids lutin and zeaxanthin, also vitamin A, B and zinc and many other micronutrients.
                                         MEDICINAL USES OF GARLIC

Garlic and its oil

Today , there are now over 12 studies published around the world that confirm that garlic can reduce cholesterol. Garlic is known to stimulate T lymphocytes and macrophage action, promote interleutin – 1 levels, and support natural killer cells, strong activityof these key cells promote health immune stystem function and strenghten the bodies defenses.
“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 other health benefits of garlic mostly supported by human research studies.
The entire “head” is called a garlic bulb, while each segment is called a clove. There are about 10-20 cloves in a single bulb, give or take. We now know that most of the health effects are caused by one of the sulfur compounds formed when a garlic clove is chopped,
crushed or chewed. This compound is known as allicin, and is also responsible for the distinct garlic smell. Allicin enters the body from the digestive tract and travels all over the body, where it exerts its potent biological effects.
Garlic is a plant , grown for its cooking properties and health effects. It is high in a sulfur compound called Allicin,which is believed to bring most of the health benefits. Garlic Is Highly Nutritious,but has very few calories calorie for calorie, garlic is incredibly nutritious. A 1 ounce (28grams)serving of garlic contains (3): Manganese: 23% of the RDA. Vitamin B6: 17% of the RDA. Vitamin C: 15% of the RDA. Selenium: 6% of the RDA. Fiber: 1 gram. 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 we need.      with 1.8 grams of protein and 9 grams of carbs. Garlic is low in calories and very rich in Vitamin C, Vitamin B6 and Manganese. It also contains trace amounts of various other nutrients.
1. Garlic is a potent and tried antibiotics. It can Combat Sickness, including the Common Cold Garlic supplementation is 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 with placebo . The average 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 (2.56 grams per day) can reduce the number of days sick with cold or flu by 61% (5). If you often get colds, then adding garlic to your diet could be i incredibly helpful. Bottom Line: Garlic supplementation helps to prevent and reduce the severity of common illnesses like the flu and common cold.
2. The active compounds in garlic can reduce Blood Pressure: Cardiovascular diseases like heart attacks and strokes are the world’s biggest killers. High blood pressure, or hypertension, is one of the most important drivers of these diseases. Human studies have found garlic supplementation to have a significant 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 effective as some known drug sat reducing blood pressure over a 24 week period Supplement doses must be fairly high to have these desired effects. The amount of allicin needed is equivalent to about four cloves of garlic per day. Bottom Line: High doses of garlic appear to improve blood pressure of those with known high blood pressure In some instances, supplementation can be as effective as regular medications.
3. Garlic Improves Cholesterol Levels  which may lower the risk of Heart Disease garlic can lower total and LDL cholesterol. For those with high cholesterol, garlic supplementation appears to reduce total and/or LDL cholesterol by about 10-15% (10, 11, 12). Looking at LDL (the “bad”) and HDL (the “good”) cholesterol specifically, garlic appears to lower LDL Bottom Line: Garlic supplementation seems to reduce total and LDL cholesterol, particularly in those who have high cholesterol.
4. Garlic is an immune Booster:
Garlic contains antioxidants that support the body’s protective mechanisms against oxidative damage . High doses of garlic supplementation have been shown to increase antioxidant enzymes in humans as well as significantly 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 Bottom Line: Garlic contains antioxidants that protect against cell damage and ageing.
5. Garlic is a longevity food
 6.  Garlic May Help You Live Longer. Effects on longevity are basically impossible to prove in humans. But given the beneficial effects on important 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 important factor, because these are common causes of death, especially in the elderly or people with dysfunctional immune  systems. Bottom Line: Garlic has known beneficial effects on common causes of chronic disease, so it makes perfect sense that it could help you live longer.
7.  Athletic performance Can be Improved With Garlic Supplementation. Garlic was one of the earliest “performance enhancing” substances. It was traditionally used in ancient cultures to reduce fatigue and enhance the work capacity of laborers. Most notably, it was administered to Olympic athletes in ancient Greece rodent studies have shown that garlic helps with exercise performance, but very few human studies have been done. Subjects with heart disease that took garlic oil for 6 weeks had a reduction in peak heart rate of 12% and improved their exercise capacity  However, a study on nine competitive cyclists found no performance benefits). Other studies suggest that exercise-induced fatigue may be reduced with garlic.
Bottom Line: Garlic can improve physical performance in lab animals and people with heart disease. Benefits in healthy people are not yet conclusive. Eating Garlic Can Help Detoxify Heavy Metals in the Body At high doses, the sulfur compounds in garlic have been shown to protect against organ damage from heavy metal toxicity. (excessive exposure to lead)found that garlic reduced lead levels in the blood by 19%. It also reduced many clinical signs of toxicity, including headaches and blood pressure (Three doses of garlic each day even outperformed the drug in symptom reduction.
Bottom Line: Garlic was shown to significantly reduce lead toxicity and related symptoms in one study.
7. Garlic May Improve Bone Health. No human trials have measured the effects of garlic on bone loss. However, rodent studies have shown that it can minimize bone loss by increasing estrogen in females (23, 24, 25, 26). One study in menopausal women found that a daily dose of dry garlic extract (equal to 2 grams of raw garlic) significantly decreased a marker of estrogen deficiency. This suggests that this garlic may have beneficial effects on bone health in women. Foods like garlic and onions have also been shown to have beneficial effects on osteoarthritis
Bottom Line: Garlic appears to have some benefits for bone health by increasing estrogen levels in females,but more human studies are needed.
8. Garlic has anti-inflammatory properties: This gives garlic the ability to combat all disease relating to inflammations and indeed most diseases especially of the elderly have to do with inflammations.
9. Garlic is alkalizing: This super food is an alkalizing foods helping it to combat acidity, healing ulcers as well. It is one of the top yeast fighting foods due to its anti fungal properties.
Garlic is easy to include in your diet and tastes absolutely delicious.  it is also very easy (and delicious) to include garlic in your current diet. It complements most savory dishes,particularly soups and sauces. The strong taste of garlic can also add a punch to otherwise bland recipes. Garlic comes in several forms, from whole cloves and smooth pastes to powders and supplements like garlic extract and garlic oil. The minimum effective dose for therapeutic effects is one clove eaten with meals, two or
three times a day. However, keep in mind that there are some downsides to garlic, such as bad breath.
HOME REMEDIES USING GARLIC
Garlic is a potentent antibiotic:
1. For scratchy throats – put a small slice of garlic in your mouth and suck on it for 10 – 15 minutes. You can put it between your teeth and cheek, then scratch it with your teeth a little to help stimulate juice from the garlic slice. As the juice slides down your throat, there is relief.
2. Garlic can help with pain caused by insect bites like those of scorpions and centipedes. The juice of fresh garlic mixed with salt can be applied to bruises, sprains and ring worms.
3. At the first sign of a cold, chop up to 4 cloves of raw garlic and eat or use it as a garnish in soups
4. Toothache – Cut raw garlic and rob cut edge on the tooth and gums a couple of times, a day to stop toothache
5. Sinus. melt some by butter and add minced garlic cloves, spread on toast and eat
6. Herpes – Take a garlic clove and cut in half and take the other half and rub unto the affected areas.
7. Use raw garlic juice on rashes and bug bites, it stops the itching
8. Herpes: Take a garlic clove and cut in half and take the other half and rub unto the affected areas.
9. Use raw garlic juice on rashes and bug bites, it stops the itching immediately
10. Persistent cough- 8 to 10 cloves mixed with 2 tablespoon of honey 3 times daily will help with stubborn and persistent cough
11. – Tonsillitis – Peel a clove of garlic and cut them in half lengthwise, boil for a couple of minutes in about 1.5 cup water, add a pinch of salt, a pinch of pepper and sprinkle with nutmeg.
12. Bloating – stomach cramps, mix with a little warm water and drink
13. As insect repellent – Crush some fresh cloves mix with warm water and rub on the exposed part of the body, mosquitoes and other insects will be kept away from you for hours. You can also mix it with extra virgin coconut oil for even better result. Strong smell of garlic will keep insects away for hours.
Many more home remedies which you may try out yourself and send us your comment and experience with this Super food.

Some side effects:
Too much garlic can cause heartburn, upset stomach, gas and allergic reations
As it is a blood thinner, people with blood disorders or those billed for surgery and those wanting to conceive should always stay away from garlic or consult their doctor before taking garlic.
Other possible side effects of too much garlic may include headaches, loss of appeite, muscle aches and dizziness. It is highly antio-inflammatory.
Thereare also some people who are allergic to it. If you have a bleeding disorder or are taking blood thinning medications, then talk to your doctor.