Health Blog

Food can be used not only to prevent illness but also to treat it. Throughout the ages, and in all cultures played an important role in healing the sick. For this first blog, in the cold of December, here is something to warm you up:

Garlic is part of the Liliacaea family, which also includes onions, shallots, leeks, chives and spring onions. It is native to central Asia, and its cultivation began in China, Mesopotamia (modern Turkey, Iran and Iraq) and Egypt thousands of years ago. Garlic has a long reputation as a health-giving food, used both to prevent and to cure illness. In Egypt, as early as 2600 bce, workers building the pyramids were given garlic to keep them strong. Ancient Greek soldiers ate the herb to improve their strength and increase their resistance to infection. In Europe, garlic has long been used to protect against disease – 16th-century monks took it to ward off the plague, and its use was widespread during the cholera epidemics of the 19th century.

The properties of garlic

The principal active ingredients found in garlic are a volatile oil called allicin, released when the bulbs are crushed, and several sulphur compounds, released when garlic is steamed or boiled.

Recent scientific research has shown that allicin is a powerful anti-coagulant. It inhibits blood-clotting and helps to break down existing clots, allowing the blood to flow more freely and reducing blood pressure. Garlic suppresses the production of cholesterol in the liver and increases the rate at which dietary cholesterol is expelled from the body. As a result, it is extremely useful for those who suffer from high cholesterol levels, thrombosis (obstructive blood clots), heart disease and other circulatory problems.

Allicin has potent anti-bacterial and anti-fungal properties, and raw garlic is effective in relieving the symptoms of colds and respiratory infections, such as nasal congestion. It is also useful in combating digestive system infections and controlling the balance of bacteria in the gut, as well as helping to repel parasites, such as intestinal worms. Boiling a head of garlic in milk and drinking the resulting decoction every morning is a remedy for intestinal parasites.

Garlic as a cure

For maximum therapeutic value, at least two raw garlic cloves should be eaten every day. For many people, however, this is unpalatable: odourless garlic supplements can provide a useful additional source of this important food. If you are worried about bad breath, try chewing cardamom seeds, parsley leaves or a few roasted coffee beans to help disguise the smell.

Garlic can also be used to great effect in tinctures, drinks, soups and sauces. To make a garlic tincture, soak 50 g of garlic in 250 ml of strong vodka; leave it to macerate in a sealed opaque bottle for two weeks. Strain the mixture, pressing the garlic with the back of a spoon to extract all the remaining liquid. Add up to 15 drops to a small amount of water and take twice a day to reduce high blood pressure and high cholesterol, to combat colds and chronic bronchitis or as an antiseptic for the digestive system. Keep the tincture in an airtight bottle, away from light, and it will last for up to two years.