As delicious as garlic is for flavor as a culinary ingredient, it also has some amazing superpowers that you may be missing. While I’ve focused on the health benefits of consuming raw garlic directly, it can also be enjoyed in dips and sauces, though be mindful of the strong flavor it imparts. In this post, I’ll share all the exciting potential of how incorporating raw garlic into your life could possibly improve how you feel due to its health benefits.
Benefits of Raw Garlic
While research on garlic oil supplements is ongoing in regard to excess consumption, it’s important to note they may interact with blood thinners. Raw garlic in generally considers a safe and effective way to enjoy these benefits.
Antioxidant Properties – Garlic contains bioactive components such as organic sulfides such as allicin, alliin, diallyl sulfide, ajoene, diallyl trisulfide, and S-allyl-cysteine along with saponins, 20 phenolic compounds, and polysaccharides. Due to how those compounds work in the body, their biological functions help deal with oxidative stress and tissue damage that is a precursor to many health conditions.
Immunity Booster – Its bioactive properties, in particular allicin, helps fight inflammation. According to one study, garlic supplements showed great promise to overweight and obese subjects with osteoarthritis by reducing resistin and shrinking tumors. Adding some fresh garlic to your diet may possibly benefit the pain associated with deteriorating bone joints.
Heart Health – Garlic can help your cardiovascular system as well. It can lower both systolic and diastolic blood pressure for healthier readings. Furthermore, it also benefits blood lipids for reducing cholesterol levels for keeping the heart healthy.
Anti-Microbial Properties – Eating raw garlic has been a popular folklore treatment for infections. Its extract has been studied as a potential substitute due to its antibacterial properties as a safer alternative to some antibiotics.
Antiviral – It also has antiviral properties because of its organosulfur compounds (OSCs), especially in raw form.
Digestive Health – Raw garlic can benefit the digestive system since it reduces inflammation, destroys bad bacteria in the gut and preserves the good bacteria in the intestines.
Blood Sugar Control – Due to its sulfur components, garlic can help better regulate blood sugar levels with how it handles insulin sensitivity and resistence. Eating raw garlic could help prevent the risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
Cancer Fighting – Garlic’s bioactive compounds, namely DATS, allicin, DADS, diallyl sulfide, and allyl mercaptan have anticancer properties for colorectal, lung, gastric, and bladder cancer.
Potential Downsides of Raw Garlic Consumption
- Breath odor and body odor
- Digestive discomfort: Heartburn, gas, stomach upset (especially for some people)
- Blood thinning properties: Can interact with blood thinners or increase bleeding risk before surgery.
- Skin irritation: Topical application of raw garlic can cause irritation for some people.
As astonishing as what potential garlic has for health benefits and new medications, research is still needed for evaluating its full effectiveness for treatments of specific health conditions. Before you make a lot of changes to your diet, especially if you have any health conditions and/or are taking prescription drugs, do make it a point to check with your doctor first.
