Garlic has a long history of medicinal use in societies around the world. Even Hippocrates, known as the 'Father of Medicine,' prescribed garlic to treat a range of health conditions.¹

Today, modern science has proven that garlic is not only bursting with flavor, but with a myriad of medicinal properties. Garlic has antibacterial, antifungal, anti-aging, and anti-cancer properties, helping to boost the immune system while reducing the risk of diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and more.²

Clinical trials have shown that consuming garlic can help reduce the number, duration, and severity of upper respiratory infections.³

In a study of 20 newly diagnosed type 2 diabetics, half ate three small garlic cloves every morning before breakfast for 30 days. Compared to those not eating garlic, the garlic eaters experienced a significant reduction in blood glucose levels and improvements in lipid metabolism, improvements in antioxidants like superoxide dismutase, catalase, and glutathione peroxidase, decreases in serum cholesterol, triglycerides, and LDL (bad) cholesterol, and beneficial increases in HDL (good) cholesterol.⁴

In another study, 40 patients with metabolic syndrome consumed 100 mg/kg of body weight of raw, crushed garlic twice a day for four weeks. Doing so significantly reduced multiple measures of metabolic syndrome, including waist circumference, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, and fasting blood glucose. They also experienced a significant beneficial increase in HDL cholesterol.⁵

Numerous observational studies have tied consuming raw garlic to a reduced risk of some specific cancers:

• Eating it at least twice a week was associated with lower odds of liver cancer, compared to those who ate it less than twice week.⁶
• Consuming raw garlic more than twice a week was associated with a lower risk of lung cancer.⁷
• Eating it at least once a week was associated with lower odds of esophageal cancer in smokers and drinkers, who have an increased risk of this type of cancer.⁸

Garlic consumption has also been linked to increased longevity. In a study of over 27,000 people who lived to be over 80 years old, researchers found that those who consumed garlic at least once a week lived longer than those who ate it less than once a week.⁹

To get more garlic in your diet, you can add raw garlic to salad dressings, marinades, guacamole, or hummus, or sauté garlic in olive oil when cooking vegetables, stews, or rice. Let garlic sit for 10-15 minutes after crushing or chopping it to activate its beneficial compounds.

References

• Rivlin RS. Historical perspective on the use of garlic. J Nutr. 2001 Mar;131(3s): 951s-4s.
• Sunanta P, Kontogiorgos V, Pankasemsuk T, et al. The nutritional value, bioactive availability and functional properties of garlic and its related products during processing. Front Nutr. 2023;10:1142784.
• Ried K. Garlic Lowers Blood Pressure in Hypertensive Individuals, Regulates Serum Cholesterol, and Stimulates Immunity: An Updated Meta-analysis and Review. J Nutr. 2016 Feb;146(2):389S-96S.
• Mirunalini S. KM, Ambily V., Professor A. Effects of raw garlic (Allium Sativum) on hyperglycemia in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. 2011.
• Choudhary PR, Jani RD, Sharma MS. Effect of Raw Crushed Garlic (Allium sativum L.) on Components of Metabolic Syndrome. J Diet Suppl. 2018 Jul 4;15(4):499-506.
• Liu X, Baecker A, Wu M, et al. Raw Garlic Consumption and Risk of Liver Cancer: A Population-Based Case-Control Study in Eastern China. Nutrients. 2019 Aug 31;11(9).
• Myneni AA, Chang SC, Niu R, et al. Raw Garlic Consumption and Lung Cancer in a Chinese Population. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2016 Apr;25(4):624-33.
• Jin ZY, Wallar G, Zhou JY, et al. Consumption of garlic and its interactions with tobacco smoking and alcohol drinking on esophageal cancer in a Chinese population. Eur J Cancer Prev. 2019 Jul;28(4):278-86.
• Shi X, Lv Y, Mao C, et al. Garlic Consumption and All-Cause Mortality among Chinese Oldest-Old Individuals: A Population-Based Cohort Study. Nutrients. 2019 Jun 30;11(7).