Garlic for Health

Garlics, tho’ used by the French are better
adapted to the uses of medicine than cookery
– Amelia Simmons, American Cookery, 1796
Garlic has long been considered a miracle
cure. It was commonly known as ‘poor
man’s treacle’, being freely available and used for
such afflictions as might beset the average poor
man. These included the need to neutralise
animal poisons, an idea that survives in the notion
that cut garlic rubbed against a bee sting alleviates
the pain. According to Nicholas Culpeper, the
seventeenth-century herbalist, garlic also worked
against bites from mad dogs! Although this is
perhaps not such an issue in today’s world of

strict quarantine laws, the swing towards
alternative and natural medicines has secured
garlic an unprecedented amount of attention.
Odourless garlic is now available to encourage
the more nasally sensitive to benefit from its
properties, and a plethora of research has tried
to quantify what our ancestors knew all along:
garlic is good for you!

But I was more beholding to the Guianians than
any other; for Antonio de Berreo told me that
he could never attain to the knowledge thereof,
and yet they taught me the best way of healing
as well thereof as of all other poisons. Some of
the Spaniards have been cured in ordinary
wounds of the common poisoned arrows with
the juice of garlic.
– Sir Walter Raleigh, in his account of the
discovery of Guiana in 1595
The general principle to remember with garlic is
that it is better for you raw. The fact that its
potency decreases over time and is almost
eradicated by cooking, as is its smell, has caused

concern over the allicin content and therefore
effectiveness of the new breed of odourless
garlic. Allicin and its derivatives are the main
chemicals that are beneficial to the human body,
produced whenever garlic begins to degrade
through chopping or crushing. A powerful
antibiotic and antifungal substance, allicin can
therefore be used to treat basic skin and yeast
infections.
A tried and tested way of doing this is to smear
crushed garlic onto the affected areas, although
it is worth adding a note of caution. The crushed
garlic can be so vigorous that excessive contact
provokes skin blistering. It is therefore wise to

avoid this method for prolonged periods for
time, and most especially for the treatment of
yeast infections! In order to enjoy the other
health goodies that allicin has to offer, including
strengthening the immune system and limiting the
growth of yeast in the first place, one might be
better off seeking other methods. Consuming
garlic is probably preferable to applying it liberally
to the skin, although the addition of oil can help
to dilute the pungent poultice.
Garlic is as good as ten mothers
– Indian proverb

Diallyl sulphides, transformation products of
allicin, form another significant group of ‘friendly’
substances that are released whenever raw garlic
gets a good beating. They survive cooking more
successfully than allicin does, and, although they
do not have allicin’s antifungal properties, they
have a host of other hidden bonuses. It is the
diallyl sulphides that have chief responsibility for
giving garlic its anticarcinogenic reputation. Simply
eating garlic can guard against the risk of stomach
cancer, and even inhibits the growth of tumours.
They, along with other allicin products, also have
a highly beneficial effect on the cardiovascular
system, including lowering levels of harmful Low-
Density Lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol and

guarding against blood clotting by unclogging
arteries and regulating blood pressure.
In snowy weather, garlic is worth as much as
a horse
– Spanish proverb
The general principle of many of these properties
were noted long before modern research. The
Roman writer Pliny the Elder was convinced garlic
cured suspected tumours, promoted and
improved circulation of the blood and, perhaps
more controversially, also claimed that garlic was
an aphrodisiac. Despite the fact that garlic may
be one of the most unsociable foods around,

and no self-respecting person would even
consider eating it on a first date, it is a renowned
aphrodisiac. This may be because in certain forms
garlic can not only improve circulation but also
stimulate the production of nitric oxide synthase
(NOS), the enzyme primarily responsible for the
mechanism of erection.
Our Rabbis taught Five things were said of garlic:
It satiates, it keeps the body warm, it brightens
up the face, it increases semen, and kills
parasites in the bowels.
– The Talmud, Baba Kama 82a
As if to make up for getting you into the situation
in the first place, garlic can be especially useful

during pregnancy. Taking garlic whilst pregnant is
not only thought to be fairly safe, but it also
reduces the risk of pre-eclampsia and boosts the
weight of the baby. However, be warned that
because of the unsettling effect of garlic on the
digestive system, garlic is held by some to be best
avoided at this time. Following pregnancy it can
also increase the odour of the milk, the amount
consumed by the infant and the period spent
feeding.
Raw garlic and pure wine make a shrewd man
– Spanish proverb

Garlic is not just beneficial for humans. If you feed
hens with garlic they will produce bigger eggs,
although it is important to stop feeding them garlic
when they begin to lay or their eggs will have a
distinct garlicky flavour. For those with more
conventional pets, it has been noted that fleas
dislike the taste of garlic. If your dog agrees to
consume the clove, then not only will he hopefully
be a flea-free zone but it will have the added bonus
of sweetening his breath! This can also work for
horses. Garlic capsules are also sold as a
supplement to keep canine worms at bay.
That is not to say that garlic is beneficial for all
creatures great and small. A recent study

investigating the appetite of leeches found that
those leeches placed on an arm smeared with
garlic died within two and a half hours!
DEMOSTHENES: Now, bolt down these cloves
of garlic.
SAUSAGE-SELLER: Pray, what for?
DEMOSTHENES: Well primed with garlic, you
will have greater mettle for the fight. But hurry,
make haste rapidly!
– Aristophanes, Knights