Fresh garlic, used for medicinal properties for centuries,
may have clinically proven health benefits for some conditions. Many studies
use garlic supplements rather than fresh garlic, so it can't be said without
reservation that the same effects can be attributed to fresh garlic, although
both contain the active ingredient, allicin. However, fresh garlic actually
contains more allicin than supplements. In fresh garlic, allicin is unstable
and changes chemical composition quickly, making clinical comparison to
supplements more complicated.
Allicin is the "magic bullet" in garlic
from which its many benefits are derived but being unstable, it reacts with
many things and breaks down into other compounds. Because garlic forms the
active compound, allicin, steadily and in regular spurts rather than all at
once it is better to let it set for a 15 to 90 minutes before using it in order
to build up a greater amount of allicin. Allicin has a half-life in air of
about 18 hours as it slowly deteriorates into other smelly, sulfurous things.
Adding allicin to water somewhat stabilizes it and preserves its antibiotic
properties and extends its half life to about two months.
Allicin from crushed raw garlic is a
very strong antibiotic that kills MRSA staph on contact and staph cannot become
immune to it because it kills bacteria by causing their cells to swell and
burst rather than blocking chemical receptors like pharmaceutical antibiotics
do. One study (Walton, Herbold&Lendegren 1936-1938 - Journal of Food
Science) even showed that the vapors alone from nearby crushed raw garlic could
kill bacteria up to eight inches away in four hours. Numerous studies have
shown that allicin kills cancer cells on contact but that's a moot point
because allicin is too volatile to exist long enough (half-life of less than
one minute in blood) in the human body to do any good.
When you cook or otherwise heat garlic
that has been crushed the allicin that has formed breaks down into some
unstable smelly fat-soluble polysulfide compounds that break down into Di Allyl
Tri- Sulfide (DATS for short) which breaks down into the much more stable Di
Allyl Di-Sulfide (DADS for short). When you mix crushed raw garlic with alcohol
or vinegar, water-soluble polyvinyl compounds are generated. When you eat these
things, the water-soluble compounds are tiny and pass right through the walls
of the stomach are are absorbed directly through the capillaries into the blood
stream; the fat-soluble polysulfides are too large to pass through the openings
in the capillary walls and so move to the bottom of the stomach where they pass
out through the pylorus into the duodenum where they are readily absorbed into
the lymphatic system, a fat-soluble environment. They circulate around the
lymphatic system for a few hours and then are dumped into the largest vein, the
vena cava and circulate in the blood stream.
While these garlic metabolites are in
the lymphatic system they kill or inhibit cancer cells and strengthen the
immune system. Once they get into the blood stream they go through the liver
and help purify it and also force it to manufacture more HDL cholesterol which
then reduces the amount of LDL cholesterol and reduces total cholesterol and
reduces tri-glycerides. They also work their way through the lungs and that is
when they cause secondary garlic breath and also a garlicky smell emanates from
the sweat glands and pores. This is an unavoidable consequence of consuming
garlic and is your way of knowing the fat-soluble garlic is circulating in your
lymphatic system and the rest of the body, too. Good garlic pills with abundant
fat-soluble compounds will produce such a garlicky aroma several hours later;
the less the secondary odor, the less the fat-soluble garlic compounds
assimilated and those are the compounds that strengthen the immune system and
protect against infection and cancer.
The fat-soluble compounds have certain
properties and the water-solubles have different properties. The water-solubles
are odorless while the fat-solubles are very odorous, thanks to a compound
called allyl mercaptan, which causes the garlicky odor. The odor-free main
water-soluble compound is S Allyl Cysteine, SAC for short, while the main
fat-solubles are the polysulfides that break down into their most stable form,
the smelly Di-Allyl Di-Sulfide, DADS for short. DADS is somewhat antibiotic but
much less so than allicin, has anti-tumor properties and strengthens the immune
system by stimulating the body to build antibodies.
The odor-free water-soluble SAC is
great for those in socially sensitive situations who still want the circulatory
benefits of garlic but who really don't want the odor of the fat-solubles. In
standard dosages SAC has almost no antibiotic or antitumor properties but has
excellent circulatory system benefits including lowering blood pressure, blood
sugar, triglycerides and total cholesterol and inhibits clotting, preventing
strokes and heart attacks. Garlic pickled in vinegar and Kyolic aged garlic
extract are sources of SAC. Here are
some specific allicin action against some health conditions:
Hypertension
An
analysis of several studies reported in the June 2008 "BMC Cardiovascular
Disorders" by lead author Karin Ried, PhD of the University of Adelaide
found that garlic supplements had better result than placebo in 11 studies. The
systolic pressure dropped 8.4 +/- 2.8 mm Hg in people with hypertension, on
average. Some studies show a drop in blood pressure of 7 to 8 percent,
MedlinePlus reports, most using a garlic powder supplement rather than fresh
garlic.
Colorectal Cancer
A
systematic review of literature reported in the Oct 2007 "Journal of
Nutrition" by lead author SN Ngo found that fresh raw or cooked garlic
reduced the risk of developing colorectal cancer by 30 percent overall in seven
studies. MedlinePlus reported that in most studies showing a benefit, the
benefit applied only to fresh garlic rather than supplements.
Heart Disease
Garlic
may reduce atherosclerosis, the buildup of plaque in the blood vessels which
often leads to heart attack or stroke. Some studies show a reduction of
cholesterol or triglycerides in those taking garlic, but not all studies reach
the same conclusions, MedlinePlus reports.
Colds
A
study of 146 people found that garlic supplements reduced the frequency and
duration of colds, Peter Joslin of the Garlic Centre, United Kingdom reported
in the July/ August 2001 "Advances in Therapy". The study, conducted
over 12 weeks between November and February, found that people taking garlic
supplements had 24 colds as compared to 65 cold in the placebo group. The
placebo group's cold also lasted a full day longer. People in the placebo
groups also developed re-infections more often than those taking the
supplement, with 2 in the active group and 16 in the placebo group. Since this
study used garlic supplements, result may not apply to fresh garlic.
Prostate Problems
Garlic
may help reduce benign prostatic hypertrophy, MedlinePlus states. Men in China
who eat a clove of garlic daily lower their risk of developing prostate cancer
by about 50 percent, the same site adds.
References
- BMC Cardiovascular Disorders: Effect of Garlic of Blood Pressure: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis; Karin Ried, PhD et al; June 2008
- MedlinePlus: Garlic
- "Journal of Nutrition": Doe Garlic Reduce the Risk of Colorectal Cancer? A Systematic Review: SN Ngo et al; Oct 2007
- University of Maryland Medical Center: Garlic
- "Advances in Therapy": Preventing the Common Cold With A Garlic Supplement; Peter Joslin, BSc; July/August 2001
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