Whether your home is on a piece of rural property or an apartment in the city, you’ll want to batten down the hatches if it looks like all hell is about to break loose.
If and when it comes to this, here’s a way to help you maintain your health. Try to channel your inner pharaoh. Let me explain.
Egyptian pharaohs spent the equivalent of millions of dollars on garlic to feed the builders of the pyramids. It was used as both an appetite suppressant and an irreplaceable nutritional supplement for their subsistence diet of porridge. It was of such importance in ancient Egypt that before the pharaohs passed to the afterlife, they planned to take garlic with them. That’s why it was placed in their tombs.
Due to its incredible medicinal value and ease of storage, garlic has been planted and grown throughout Asia and the Mediterranean region for thousands of years. It was one of the first plants ever cultivated by humans, which has created a debate around its origins. Records show that garlic was being used for its healing qualities by the Sumerians (2600-2100 BC) in today’s Middle East, but many historians claim that garlic originated in China.
Fortunately for us, garlic has become not just a dietary supplement, but an integral part of many dishes throughout the world. Can you imagine pasta or most Asian dishes without garlic? Despite the small amount used in our favorite foods, garlic actually provides a wide range of different vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants per serving.
Research conducted over the last 40 years has revealed that garlic has additional benefits when you consume it raw. Garlic extract, essential oil, and dehydrated raw powder are three raw supplements that can benefit many different conditions.
Conditions Garlic can Remedy
Garlic is a powerful antimicrobial and antioxidant, as well as having anti-parasitic and anti-viral properties. In the mid-80s, it was proven that garlic essential oil can inhibit the growth of 17 different bacteria species[1], including Salmonella, Escherichia (E.) coli, Pseudomonas, and Staphylococcus aureus.
Most health benefits occur when garlic is crushed or chopped. This action releases the alliinase enzyme in garlic, which helps produce the compound allicin. Allicin is responsible for garlic’s antimicrobial properties as well as its delicious smell and taste.
Garlic is best consumed in the rawest state possible, as allicin is deactivated when heated. Garlic loses many of its vitamins when cooked. However, the minerals and antioxidant properties stay mostly intact, particularly when the cooking time is kept to a minimum through stir-frying.
Whether cooked or consumed raw, garlic is an excellent home remedy that’s been shown to help treat or prevent the following conditions:
- Age-related physical decline
- Antibiotic resistance
- Atherosclerosis and thrombosis
- Bee stings
- Cancer
- Cardiovascular disease
- Colds and flu
- Diabetes
- Dyspepsia
- High blood pressure and hypertension
- High cholesterol
- Obesity
- Respiratory and urinary tract infections
- Ringworm and hookworm infections
- Sexual dysfunction
Resources
[1] https://aac.asm.org/content/aac/27/4/485.full.pdf
