Chinese people have known of the health benefits of raw garlic for thousands of years. In China, apart from being used to flavor food, garlic is also traditionally used in teas and folk remedies. Why? Garlic is one of nature’s strongest immune system boosters, and a powerful antibiotic, digestive aid and libido enhancer. As you’ll see below, these are just some of the health benefits of raw garlic.
However, while the health and medicinal benefits of garlic are numerous, it can also overheat your system if you eat too much. According to Traditional Chinese Dietary Therapy, garlic is warm in nature and a strong stimulant. Therefore, people who have excess heat in their body should first balance their system. Excessive internal heat comes from eating too many heating foods and drinks, e.g. meat, fried foods, coffee and alcohol. This causes symptoms like red eyes, bad breath, constipation, yellow urine, a yellow tongue moss and acne. If you have these kinds of symptoms, eliminate or greatly reduce the above items from your diet for a few weeks before you start eating garlic regularly, or it will just make your body hotter and your symptoms worse.
Below are some main health and medicinal benefits of garlic. Note: To get the full health benefits of raw garlic, you have to do just that – take it raw! Commercial garlic pills, tablets, oils and capsules, especially the odorless ones, are often devoid of the active enzymes that provide the benefits. Crushed, raw garlic may be mixed into virtually any meal, or put in gelatin capsules for easy swallowing, or drunk as a tea by simply crushing 1 or 2 cloves and adding hot water. These methods may not be very appealing, but do you want the benefits or not?
Health & Medicinal Benefits of Garlic
- Powerful immune system enhancer
- Antibacterial, antiviral
- Antifungal – effective remedy for yeast infections & candida
- Clears boils & infected sores
- Improves appetite
- Digestive aid – especially good if eaten with meat
- Increases libido – take several raw cloves a day
- Expels intestinal parasites & worms
- Reduces high cholesterol
Health Remedies Using Garlic Cloves
Below are some Chinese health remedies using garlic cloves as the main ingredient. These are common, traditional ways that Chinese people make use of the health benefits of raw garlic.
- Garlic Tea:
- Garlic Nose Drops:
- Garlic Paste:
Put 1 or 2 cloves of crushed garlic and 1 or 2 grams of loose-leaf green tea in a teapot. Add a teaspoon or two of unrefined brown sugar if you wish. Pour in boiling water that has been left to cool slightly. Stir the mixture and let it steep for several minutes before drinking. After wards, leave the ingredients in the pot, as you can top it up with more water once or twice throughout the day. This is a common folk remedy for killing germs and resolving toxins in the body.
This is a preventative for the common cold and sinus problems. Crush several cloves of garlic to obtain the juice. Mix with warm water at a ratio of two parts water to one part garlic juice. Lie down and use an eye-dropper to place a couple of drops into each nostril as soon as you feel any symptoms coming on. Continue for as long as necessary. If the drops overly irritate your nostrils, stop, or reduce the number of drops.
Crush 2 garlic cloves and mix with several drops of pure sesame oil to make a paste for external application to boils,carbuncles and infected sores. Cover then reapply when the paste becomes dry and falls off. If the skin becomes overly irritated discontinue use or wait for a day or two and try again. Maximizing the Health Benefits of Raw Garlic To get the full health benefits of raw garlic, whether in salads, as tea, or in capsules, it’s important you eat less refined, processed and canned foods, and more foods in as close to their natural state as possible. Afterall, what’s the point in taking fresh, raw garlic to improve your health while, for instance, continuing to eat nutritionally-dead, toxin-producing junk foods?
Matthew Scott is a professionally trained Chinese medicine practitioner from Australia, living in China since 2000. For more traditional Chinese health and diet tips see Matthew’s Chinese Diet Report.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Matthew_Scott
POTENT IMMUNE SYSTEM BOOSTER – GARLIC
Garlic (Allium sativum) is widely recognised as a culinary herb and a potent natural medicine. It is a natural antimicrobial and unlike most antibiotics, garlic does not destroy the body’s normal flora. Garlic is a health-building herb, rich in potassium, zinc, vitamins A and C and selenium. It also contains sulfur, calcium, manganese, copper, vitamin B1 and iron. Thousands of research studies have been done on garlic over the past 40 years – by 1996 there were at least 1,808 scientific studies. These studies have repeatedly shown the benefits of garlic – an example of good research showing what millions of people of all cultures throughout history have known!
Garlic is a potent immune system booster. It is also an active anti-microbial, agent – effective against bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites. It is also an anti-inflammatory and acts as shield against radiation therapy. It also has analgesic and fever reducing properties. You can take garlic in large does to destroy viruses and bacteria without damaging yourself. Garlic is best eaten fresh and finely chopped as commercial production and cooking can destroy much of the natural activity of the fresh cloves. Fresh garlic can be used in salads, salad dressings and other dishes.
If you are eating fresh garlic however you need to be wary of where the garlic comes from and how it has been treated. Ninety percent of the garlic eaten in Australia (for example) is imported and every single bulb is fumigated with one the world’s most dangerous chemicals, Methyl Bromide. Methyl Bromide is highly toxic to humans and all living things. Acute exposure burns the skin and causes severe kidney damage. It has devastating effects on the central nervous system which could be fatal – so growing our own has a special attraction!
Garlic can be used:
- in fighting infections – it is an antiseptic with antibiotic and antifungal action. It is effective against:
- herpes infections such as cold sores, genital herpes and chicken pox
- all infections of the gastrointestinal tract – including helicobacter pylori (the bacteria which contributes to peptic ulcers)
- urinary tract infections
- upper respiratory tract infections such as colds, flu, bronchitis, sinusitis and so forth
- ear infections – can be treated by placing garlic oil on a piece of cotton wool in the ear (you need to be sure that the ear drum is intact before doing this – if in doubt seek professional assistance)
- candida infections
- in all cardiovascular conditions. It:
- tones the heart and circulatory system
- helps to lower the blood pressure
- reduces high cholesterol and blood fats
- reduced high blood sugar levels
- reduces blood clotting abnormalities
- helps to reduce the risk of atherosclerosis by inhibiting at least two enzymes involved in the production of cholesterol in the liver
- in reducing the risk of certain types of cancers. There are statistical studies that show a correlation between garlic consumption and low cancer rates. Garlic also limits the side effects of chemo and radiotherapy.
- in respiratory conditions where is acts as a decongestant and reduces mucous and phlegm production.
- As an antioxidant.
The active ingredients in garlic are alliin (which give the garlic its taste) and allicin, a sulphate (which gives the garlic its odour). Only the allicin have been found to have activity at around normal garlic consumption levels (3-5g per day). Allicin has been shown to be essential to most of the antimicrobial and cholesterol lowering effects and probably also the anti-blood clotting and antioxidant effects. The anti-cancer effects appear to be shared about equally between allicin and other unidentified components. Some sources suggest that large quantities of garlic should not be consumed prior to surgery, as garlic can prolong bleeding time. People taking anticoagulants (blood thinners) such as warfarin and heparin should be careful about taking too much garlic. There are rare occasions when garlic can cause gastrointestinal symptoms or allergic reactions.Garlic is a wonderful culinary and medicinal herb. It is a potent immune booster and natural antimicrobial. It is effective in treating infections, cardiovascular disease and can be of assist in reducing the risks of certain types of cancers.
Dr Jenny Tylee is an experienced health professional who is passionate about health and wellbeing. She believes that health is not just absence of disease and seeks to actively promote vitality and wellness through empowering others. She encourages people to improve their health by quit smoking, cleansing their body, taking essential vitamin and mineral supplement and many other methods, including herbal remedies.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Dr_Jenny_Tylee
GARLIC-RAW GARLIC RECIPES AND HEALTH BENEFITS
The health benefits of garlic are well documented. Millions of people eat garlic, however, most people only eat it cooked. Fewer people actually eat raw garlic, yet eating garlic raw is the way to maximise garlic’s health benefits. Taking garlic supplements does not have the same potency as eating raw garlic recipes.
Garlic, of course, is rich in protein, vitamins A, B and C, and essential minerals, including iron, calcium and selenium. Garlic’s medicinal role in treating illness has been described in over 1000 scientific studies, and modern research into the health benefits of garlic have shown it to be beneficial in a wide variety of conditions, including high blood pressure, the common cold, cancer, as well as bacterial and fungal infections.
The ingredient in garlic which is responsible for its healing properties is called allicin. However, it is only when garlic sustains damage that allicin is released and becomes active. So when raw garlic is cut, crushed or bruised, allicin is released. Just as with other nutrients, though, allicin is destroyed by heat and unfortunately, it breaks down quickly once released. Therefore, to get all the garlic health benefits, it is best eaten raw and immediately after being prepared.
Raw garlic recipes are easy. For many years I cooked with garlic until I realised I was missing out on its health benefits. So, I began adding garlic right at the end of the cooking process. For example, I would crush garlic onto my soup or a stir-fry after it was ladled into my bowl. Similarly, I would crush raw garlic onto buttered toast before I added my gently fried egg, fried in coconut oil, of course. Raw tomatoes on toast with rock salt, fresh basil and crushed raw garlic is delicious, much like a bruschetta. Moreover, I would make such raw garlic recipes and feed them to my kids at the first signs of a sore throat, and their sore throat would always disappear. You don’t need much. Start with just a quarter of a clove crushed and build it up as you become accustomed to the taste. You can still cook with garlic for flavour. But for its health benefits, add raw garlic to your dishes.
I have advised many patients to try the simple raw garlic recipes when they have tried many other things, including antibiotics, to knock their respiratory infections on the head. The amazement of people when they experience the positive effects of eating raw garlic when suffering from such infections has led to many a convert. Their concerns over garlic breath paled into insignificance when measured against the health benefits. Besides, there are many easy and cheap ways to mask garlic breath, including eating fresh parsley and other fresh herbs, such as peppermint, spearmint, cardamom seeds and coriander leaves. You can also suck a lemon wedge sprinkled with salt. Alternatively there are flavoured mints, chewing gums, mouth washes and drinking green tea.
So go ahead! Kill off those cold and flu bugs and get the maximum garlic health benefits by eating it raw. Start today. Making raw garlic recipes is easy. No recipe books are required. Just crush it onto your lunch or dinner for optimum good health. Enjoy!
Sue Beilby is a freelance writer, Registered Nurse and hypnotherapist with more than 30 years of experience as a health care professional. As a mother of four, she also has wide child rearing experience.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Sue_Beilby