Garlic is THE Number One BAD BOY in the vegetable world. Not because of all the good it can do you, but because of the stigma about it being the WORST cause of bad breathe. This is quite ironic since many cultures even today, still worship garlic because of its medicinal powers. I'm no anthropologist, but it stands to reason that these same cultures must have lived without it, and then discovered it, to know the powerful difference it makes.
Don't take my word for it though. Look at and consider the following reasons why you should be a garlic-eating worshiper enough to worry about bad breathe! Here's what history and medical science have to say:
Historical Use
Garlic is used as both food and medicine in many cultures, and has been for thousands of years, dating at least as far back to when the Giza pyramids were built.
Garlic comes up in the Bible and the Talmud. Hippocrates, Galen, Pliny the Elder, and Dioscorides all mention the power of garlic to remedy many conditions, including parasites, respiratory problems, poor digestion, and low energy. Its use in China was only first mentioned as late as AD 510, but today China is the world's top producer!
It was eaten on a regular basis by ancient Greek and Roman soldiers, sailors, and rural classes (Virgil, Ecologues ii. 11), and, according to Pliny the Elder (Natural History xix. 32), by the African peasantry. Galen promotes it as the "rustic's theriac" (cure-all) (see F. Adams' Paulus Aegineta, p. 99), and Alexander Neckam, a writer of the 12th century (see Wright's edition of his works, p. 473, 1863), recommends it as a remedy for heat stroke.
The legend of Korea's establishment as a nation, tells of gods who were said to have given mortal women with bear and tiger temperaments, an Immortal's black garlic before mating with them. This black, six-clove garlic gave to all women who ate it, supernatural powers and immortality. This garlic is still grown in Korea today.
Early in the 20th century, it was used in the treatment of pulmonary tuberculosis.
Health Benefits And Medicinal Use
Just look at the nutritional statistics for Garlic, raw:
Nutritional value per 100 g (3.5 oz)
Energy
623 kJ (149 kcal)
Carbohydrates
33.06 g
- Sugars
1.00g
- Dietary fiber
2.1 g
Fat
0.5 g
Protein
6.39 g
- beta-carotene
5 μg (0%)
Thiamine (Vit. B1)
0.2 mg (17%)
Riboflavin (Vit. B2)
0.11 mg (9%)
Niacin (Vit. B3)
0.7 mg (5%)
Pantothenic acid (B5)
0.596 mg (12%)
Vitamin B6
1.235 mg (95%)
Folate (Vit. B9)
3 μg (1%)
Vitamin C
31.2 mg (38%)
Calcium
181 mg (18%)
Iron
1.7 mg (13%)
Magnesium
25 mg (7%)
Phosphorus
153 mg (22%)
Potassium
401 mg (9%)
Sodium
17 mg (1%)
Zinc
1.16 mg (12%)
Manganese 1.672 mg
Selenium 14.2 μg
Percentages are relative to US recommendations for adults.
Source: USDA Nutrient database
In vitro studies show garlic as having antibacterial, antiviral, and antifungal effects. Garlic has also been shown to help prevent heart disease (including atherosclerosis, high cholesterol, and high blood pressure) and cancer. Garlic is used to prevent certain types of cancer, including stomach and colon cancers. It has also been demonstrated that, in countries where garlic is consumed in higher amounts, because of traditional cuisine, people in those countries have been found to have a lower prevalence of cancer.
Early studies in humans suggest possible cardiovascular benefits of garlic as well. A Czech study found garlic consumption reduced accumulation of cholesterol on the vascular walls. Another study had similar results, with garlic consumption significantly reducing aortic plaque deposits and inhibiting vascular calcification.
In 2007, the BBC reported that garlic (Allium sativum) has other beneficial properties, such as preventing and fighting the common cold. This, "may have", assertion has the backing of a long tradition in thousands of years of herbal medicine, which has used garlic for hoarseness and coughs. The Cherokee also used it as a preventative medicine for coughs and croup.
It has been shown that garlic is also alleged to help regulate blood sugar levels. Regular and prolonged use of garlic, lower blood homocysteine levels and has been proven to prevent some complications of diabetes mellitus, but people taking insulin should not consume medicinal amounts of garlic without consulting a physician.
In 1858, Louis Pasteur discovered garlic's antibacterial activity, which went on to be used as an antiseptic to prevent gangrene during World War I and World War II.
More recently, clinical trials demonstrate that a mouthwash containing 2.5% fresh garlic produces good antimicrobial activity, although the majority of the participants reported an unpleasant taste and halitosis (bad breathe)!
Of course you are going to get bad breathe from drinking or eating garlic alone! --and this is the key word here: alone. I'll get right back to this concept shortly, when I show you 3 tips for eating garlic properly, so you don't get bad breathe when you eat it.
Garlic cloves have been, and are still used as a remedy for infections (especially chest problems), digestive disorders, and fungal infections such as thrush. Garlic can also be used as a disinfectant because of its bacteriostatic and bacteriocidal properties.
In 1924, it was discovered to be an effective way to prevent scurvy, because of its high vitamin C content!
Garlic supplementation has been shown to boost testosterone levels!
A 2010 double-blind, parallel, randomized, placebo-controlled trial involving 50 patients, strongly suggests that garlic is superior to placebos in lowering systolic blood pressure similarly to other current first line medications!
So now that you know how powerful garlic is and all the reasons why you should be a garlic-eating worshiper, now it's time to put to rest your fears of getting bad breathe when you start!
First, consider for a moment: by just eating fresh raw garlic as an effective preventative which would stop you from ever getting cancer and a whole variety of different ills, wouldn't it be worth trying it in exchange for a little bad breathe?
But you won't have to worry about bad breathe again after following these 3 tips for eating fresh garlic the right way:
Tip#1: Eat small amounts daily. It only takes a small amount of garlic (like one half clove or one half teaspoon!) eaten fresh every day to get ALL its powerful preventative medicine.
Tip#2: Never eat garlic alone. This doesn't mean it is dangerous to eat garlic by yourself, it means, always eat your small daily amount of fresh garlic with other fresh foods such as, in a salad. Always eat your fresh garlic before your main meal. The other fresh veggies, and then the cooked food you eat, as your main supper, will simply neutralize the garlic aroma so you have, "no breathe"!
Tip#3: You only get "garlic breathe" from cooked garlic and garlic pills. So AVOID them! If you are worried about bad breathe from eating fresh garlic, then remember that garlic eaten properly (in small amounts with other main course foods gets its aroma neutralized--see tip#2) and is NOT you main concern. Never consume alcohol, tobacco or coffee. These are the only things guaranteed to give you bad breathe, aside from eating vomit and excrement! Ouch! Sorry to be so blunt, but this is a proven fact! Now I'm sure you do not eat vomit or excrement, but there's a good chance you may be addicted to, coffee, tobacco or alcohol. If you are not willing to give up any one or all of these three "breathe devils", you can only mask these fumes with fresh fruit, or breathe gum, or "slips" that dissolve on your tongue. If you are still experiencing bad breathe issues even when eating garlic properly, and you do not consume tobacco, alcohol, or coffee, you have other digestive or gastrointestinal issues that must be addressed. You can resolve these easily, but that's a topic for another article coming soon!
Now that you are armed with these 3 tips, go ahead eat the most powerful preventative medicine known, without fear of getting bad breathe, and you will enjoy the benefits of garlic with a long life, and good health!
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