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Many Health Benefits of Garlic, The Organic Wonder Drug

Garlic’s great bulb has countless benefits. No other plant has been held out for so long as a cure for so many human ailments. That is why garlic has been considered as the natural "Wonder Drug". The best way to enjoy garlic’s health benefits is to eat it raw and crushed.

Garlic has been used medicinally for thousands of years for treating insect bites, tumors, ulcers, snakebites, wounds, headaches, heart disease, cancer, pimples, measles, sore throats, influenza, and many other diseases. Garlic also prevents infections such as the flu, common cold and cough due to its high Anti-bacterial, Anti-fungal and Anti-viral properties.

As the common proverb said: "An apple a day, keeps the doctor away".

In the same manner: "A single bulb of garlic a day, keeps many diseases away".

In general, garlic exhibits antioxidant activity, which is good for your digestive system, skin and more. It also contains flavonoids, which is good for keeping your heart and body healthy.

Many Benefits of Crushed Raw Garlic, The Wonder Drug

Garlic contains a range of compounds including "Allicin", which is a pungent oily liquid that gives crushed garlic cloves their characteristic smell, and has been shown to be the antibacterial agent due to its active sulphur.

Raw garlic is very smelly, so in order to reduce its smell. Crushed first and chopped raw garlic, allow it to sit for 5-10 minutes, which would provide enough time for the alliinase and alliin in garlic to interact with oxygen in the air and form allicin. Simply add one clove for children and two cloves for each adult per day, into your room temperature gravy and foods, salad dressings, soup, yogurt, or garnish it before serving in your own style.

It is better for your digestive system and health to eat your foods at room temperature. You should never drink hot beverages and eat hot foods, rather lukewarm, or room temperature.

A Few Other Benefits of Garlic

Garlic is just magnificent and phenomenal. The followings are a few basic known and reliable home remedies for some specific ailments, which you can try at home.

If you have cold and flu, then take small amount of garlic every day until the infection disappears. Garlic tends to reduce the frequency of colds and flu without any side effects. A suggested dose would be two or three cloves of raw, or lightly cooked garlic a day.

We all face horrid acne, blemishes, blackheads during our teens. If you want to reduce it, or if you just want to glow up your skin, then take two cloves of crushed raw garlic regularly with lukewarm water early in the morning. Garlic works as a blood cleanser and clean your system internally. Do not eat chocolates, spicy, or oily food during this treatment and rinse your face five times a day with cold water. Drinks lots of water daily to flush off toxic waste from the blood and urinate whenever you feel that your bladder is full. Else, apply a cut of raw garlic clove gently on the affected area only if you have no sensitivity to it.

Those with High Cholesterol Level, can add raw garlic in their foods. This is the better way for heart patients to reduce their cholesterol level. Modern medical science suggests a very good reason that garlic could reduce cholesterol, i.e. "Garlic is a proven anti-oxidant". This property might help to prevent (LDL), the Low Density Lipo Protein from being oxidized. This way the cholesterol build-up that clogs the arteries will be be reduced by raw garlic use.

If you are very fat and want to lose weight, squeeze half lemon juice in one glass of lukewarm water and drink it with two cloves of raw garlic regularly twice a day (morning and evening), for about three months. Avoid using starchy foods and fats. Do exercise regularly. You will amazingly feel a great change in your health and body.

If you have Wrinkles, and you want to use anti ageing cream, it would be better to use 3 cloves of crushed garlic regularly as it has a powerful antioxidant effect, which help to protect the body against damaging "Free Radicals". Remember, our skin is made up of collagen and it looses elasticity on yearly basis. Therefore, use garlic and do exercise regularly for the positive results.

If you have Earache, put two or three drops of warm garlic oil in the ears.

Take garlic to boosts the weight of babies in the womb. Thus, when they are born, they are heavier than they would have been if you hadn't taken garlic. Some babies are born too small, so garlic is a definite boon in these cases too.

Take two raw garlic cloves daily to reduce the risk of cancer, due to its Anti-Carcinogenic properties. It helps prevent cancerous compounds from forming and developing into tumors. It also inhibits the growth of tumors.

If any insect bites you at the seaside, you just crush the garlic and apply it to the affected area to reduce pain and to remove poison.

Best Safe Way of Taking Garlic

Adults could enjoy 3 cloves of raw garlic, teenagers 2 fresh garlic clove and children 1 fresh garlic clove. Crush the raw garlic cloves and swallow it raw, before going to sleep, take it down with a glass of tea, or water. - Do not take more than 3 raw cloves of garlic per day, as it might make your blood too thin, causing serious ailments.

Contra-indications Precautions

To enjoy garlic’s health benefits, adults should never consume more than 3 to 4 raw cloves of garlic a day and children 1 to 2 small cloves.

Patients suffering from heart and other cardiovascular problems and diseases should take medical advice before consuming raw garlic.

It is best to avoid garlic before any surgery because it could probably disturb Anticoagulants.

If you are on any medication, always check with your doctor first before taking raw garlic.

Asthma patients should not use it as it worsens the symptoms of Asthma.

People with sensitive skin should use caution applying raw garlic physically on the affected area. Raw garlic can burn delicate skins. Do not use directly on skin if your skin is sensitive or susceptible to rashes, or other skin reactions without consulting your doctor first. People who are, or may be allergic to garlic, or any of its sulfur compounds should not try direct raw garlic application on their skin.

Garlic’s Side Effects:

Although, garlic is a natural Anti-biotic but a very small number of people have been known to exhibit Hypersensitivity to garlic. Garlic allergy includes skin rash, higher temperature than normal and headaches. Garlic intolerance could result in Heartburn or Flatulence.

Points To Be Noted

It is important to remember that the effect of garlic on cold and flu comes from Allicin and this can be obtained from crushed, raw garlic and is destroyed by cooking. Garlic cloves cooked whole have very little medicinal value. Garlic with strong smell has more Sulphur in it, which is good enough for medicinal purpose.

Few Facts About Garlic, The Wonder Drug

* Garlic helps to boost up our Metabolism rate. Thus help us to reduce our weight easily.

* Garlic helps reduce Atherosclerotic buildup (Plaque) within the arterial system.

* Garlic lowers and helps to regulate Blood Sugar.

* Garlic helps to prevent blood clots from forming, thus reducing the possibility of Strokes.

* Garlic helps to prevent Cancer, especially of the digestive system, prevent certain tumors from growing larger and reduces the size of certain tumors.

* Garlic helps to detoxify and remove heavy metals such as lead and mercury from your body.

* Raw garlic is a proven natural antibiotic and, while far less strong than modern antibiotics, can still kill some strains of bacteria that have become immune or resistant to modern antibiotics.

* Garlic dramatically reduces yeast infections in your body parts.

* Garlic helps to make your immune system stronger against cancer, ulcers, hemorrhoids etc.

Freshly Crushed Raw Garlic is Much Better For The Heart Than Processed

On July 29, 2009, a new research study reports the first scientific evidence that freshly crushed raw garlic has more potent heart-healthy effects than dried garlic. Also most of the garlic's benefits are due to its rich array of antioxidants.

One of Garlic's heart-healthy effects results from production of hydrogen sulfide, a signaling substance that forms after raw garlic is crushed and eaten after 10 minutes, it relaxes your blood vessels acting as a chemical messenger in your body. But dried, or cooked garlic loses its ability to produce hydrogen sulfide.

The scientists gave freshly crushed raw garlic and dried and cooked garlic to two groups of lab rats. The results of the study showed how well the animals' hearts recovered from simulated heart attacks. "Both crushed raw garlic and cooked and dried garlic did reduce damage from lack of oxygen. But the fresh raw garlic group had a significantly greater effect on restoring good blood flow in the aorta and increased pressure in the left ventricle of the heart."

The very same recent scientific research tells us that slicing, chopping, mincing or pressing garlic before cooking can enhance the health-promoting properties of garlic. Garlic is rich in a wide variety of sulfur-containing compounds. One of the best studied is a compound called alliin. Alliin and a related enzyme (named "alliinase") are present but separated inside certain garlic cells when the garlic is whole and unbroken. But when garlic is cut, chewed, chopped, or crushed, these cells can rupture.

When they do, the aliinase enzyme can come into contact with the alliin molecule and cause the creation of a new compound called allicin. Allicin can be a very valuable garlic molecule in terms of its health benefits, because its intake has been associated with cardiovascular, anti-bacterial, and anti-cancer benefits. Allicin is also one of the garlic compounds that contributes to the pungent aroma and "bite" we experience from garlic. Chopping, mincing, crushing, or pressing garlic and allowing it to sit for 5-10 minutes can help provide enough time for the alliinase and alliin in garlic to interact and form allicin.

The Health Benefits of Garlic

- By Dr. Akilah Schäfer