An ingredient with a powerful aroma that enhances the flavor of our dishes, garlic is rich in benefits that are not limited to the culinary field. A food with powerful anti-inflammatory and antibiotic properties, having it at your fingertips is essential. But do not worry, no need to ruin yourself or be a victim of constant back and forth to the supermarket, a very simple method will allow you to have this ingredient at home by growing it in infinite quantity!
The flagship food of traditional medicine, garlic has been used for millennia to treat many health disorders. Now cultivated worldwide, it represents for several countries a remedy for the formidable efficiency. Depending on the country that uses it, this ingredient has been given different names throughout the centuries including "Russian penicillin" or "natural antibiotic".
As The Pharmacognosy Review explains, ancient civilizations have turned to garlic to treat many epidemics, including typhus, cholera and influenza. As a preventive and curative remedy, its traditional use attracts the curiosity of scientists and leads to several conclusive studies on its beneficial effect on our health. Let's take a closer look.
Garlic improves heart health
According to a study published by The Avicenna Journal of Phytomedicine, garlic has many benefits that act preventively on cardiovascular disease. Indeed, several clinical trials have demonstrated its positive action on the reduction of blood pressure and cholesterol, as well as the prevention of atherosclerosis, all related to the health of the heart.
Moreover, an experiment carried out on 47 patients suffering from hypertension would have proved the positive effects of garlic on the systolic blood pressure, allowing to reduce this one significantly, and this without harmful side effects. Indeed, the undeniable advantage of garlic is its ability to treat certain disorders without necessarily leading to complications. An experiment with cholesterol patients reached the same conclusion after observing a significant decrease in total serum cholesterol, reducing the risk of coronary events by 38% for 50-year-olds.
Garlic strengthens the immune system
The use of garlic to strengthen the immune system is not a recent phenomenon. Indeed, this remedy for minor disorders has proven itself well before the appearance of the pharmaceutical industry. The science confirms it today, as the Journal of Immunology Research explains, the complex biochemistry of garlic (also called Allium Sativum) seems to improve the functioning of the immune system. Thanks to the secretion of cytokinesanti-inflammatories to regulate our immune response, garlic would be at the origin of many therapeutic benefits.
Garlic treats skin disorders
According to The Journal of Dermatology, topical application of garlic would address a multitude of skin disorders, including psoriasis, alopecia, fungal infections, scarring, as well as disorders associated with aging skin. Indeed, its allicin content gives it powerful antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties.
In addition, a study to demonstrate the benefits of this ingredient on photo-aging led to very promising results. Thanks to the caffeic acid, cysteine and uracil that compose it, scientists have observed an antioxidant and anti-inflammatory action of garlic on the formation of wrinkles.
Here's how to grow garlic at home:
Separate a garlic head into individual pods and plant them 5 centimeters deep in loose, moist, deep soil. Remember to place them so that their pointed ends are facing out and spacing them about 20 centimeters apart. Then cover them with dried leaves or straw and add a fertilizer. If you have planted your garlic in autumn for example, you can fertilize it in the spring. Once the shoot starts, water your soil regularly but watch out for excess; garlic does not require intensive watering.
To preserve its taste and aroma, remove the blooming flowers on the surface. You can only remove it after 5 to 6 leaves appear and when they turn yellow or brown.
All you have to do now is enjoy the benefits of this incredible food that you have grown in a completely natural way!
Caution :
If you have just had surgery, you should not eat garlic because of its anticoagulant effect. Breastfeeding women should also avoid it so as not to alter the taste of their milk.
