FYI "Herbs" Garlic

When I was a kid playing with relatives and friends was a regular thing to do. One day As I just came home from school. I heard a laud shout from My cousins house, which was a close proximity to ours. Out of curiosity I went to check what the commotion was all about. Apparently my cousin got bitten by a stray dog while playing outside their home. It was an awesome site to behold. When I got there, blood was all over the place. It was a deep bit on the leg. And for a child around 6-7 yrs. old that meant a load of cries from my poor cousin. His mother was quick to act though, after cleaning the wound she took some cloves of garlic and squeeze the juice out and applied it to the wound. Though the result was more of terror from my cousin,it seems the application of the garlic juice was more painful than the actual dog bite. Nonetheless it was first aid his mother said. After that they went to a Doctor for more medical attention. After that, all went well.

Though the application of garlic on the wound cause by the stray dog somewhat debatable on my part though I’m not a medical expert to begin with. But after seeing what had happened the only thing I said was. "Garlic?" other than food I never though of it as something medicinal, of course being at young age then, I never really give it much importance. And as it turn out Garlic does have medicinal value. Indeed from the ancient Egyptians to modern times "Garlic" have been used for religious practice, food, medicine and oddly enough folklore (against vampires and such).

Garlic (scientific name: Allium sativum) is one of the most widely used herbs of all time. It’s medicinal properties has been will known, that during World War II. Because of garlic’s antibacterial compound known as Allicin, lives were saved by preventing wounds from having infection and later develop into gangrene when the juice of garlic was applied to the wounds.

Garlic is known as nature’s antibiotic. It’s juices inhibits the growth of fungi and viruses thus prevents viral, yeast and viral infections. Several clinical test and published studies have shown the efficacy of garlic in lowering cholesterol in the blood and is beneficial to the circulatory system of the body. Today as more research is done with garlic, more medicinal and therapeutic properties become more evident.

Benefits of Garlic:

• Good for the heart
• Helps lower bad cholesterol levels (LDL)
• Aids in lowering blood pressure
• Remedy for arteriosclerosis
• May help prevent certain types of cancer
• Boosts immune system to fight infection
• With antioxidant properties
• Cough and cold remedy
• Relives sore throat, toothache
• Aids in the treatment of tuberculosis
• With anticoagulant properties

Preparation of Garlic:

• For disinfecting wound, crush and juice the garlic bulb and apply. You may cover the afflicted area with a gauze and bandage.

• For sore throat and toothache, peal the skin and chew. Swallow the juice.

• Aside from being an herbal medicine for hypertension, arteriosclerosis and other ailments, garlic is also recommended for maintaining good health - eat raw garlic bulb, and include garlic regularly in the food you eat. It’s healthy and taste good
in a variety of dishes.

Cautions

* Known adverse effects of garlic include halitosis (non-bacterial), indigestion, nausea, emesis and diarrhea.

* Garlic may interact with warfarin, antiplatelets, saquinavir, antihypertensives, Calcium channel blockers, hypoglycemic drugs, as well as other medications. Consult a health professional before taking a garlic supplement or consuming excessive amounts of garlic.

* Garlic can thin the blood similar to the effect of aspirin.

* Two outbreaks of botulism have been caused by consuming commercially produced garlic-in-oil preparations that were not properly preserved. It is especially important for home-preparation to use safe and tested food-preservation methods to retard bacterial growth, such as including sufficient salt or acidity and keeping the mixture refrigerated. It is recommended to not keep home-preparations for more than a week.

* While culinary quantities are considered safe for consumption, very high quantities of garlic and garlic supplements have been linked with an increased risk of bleeding, particularly during pregnancy and after surgery and child birth Some breastfeeding mothers have found their babies slow to feed and have noted a garlic odor coming from their baby when they have consumed garlic. The safety of garlic supplements had not been determined for children.

* The side effects of long-term garlic supplementation, if any exist, are largely unknown and no FDA-approved study has been performed. However, garlic has been consumed for several thousand years without any adverse long-term effects, suggesting that modest quantities of garlic pose, at worst, minimal risks to normal individuals. Possible side effects include gastrointestinal discomfort, sweating, dizziness, allergic reactions, bleeding, and menstrual irregularities.

* Some degree of liver toxicity has been demonstrated in rats, particularly in large quantities.

* There have been several reports of serious burns resulting from garlic being applied topically for various purposes, including naturopathic uses and acne treatment. On the basis of numerous reports of such burns, including burns to children, topical use of raw garlic, as well as insertion of raw garlic into body cavities is discouraged. In particular, topical application of raw garlic to young children is not advisable.

* Garlic and onions might be toxic to cats and dogs.

Hope this widen your knowledge about garlic. If you want to know more or would like to try it out best to consult the expert in herbal medicine and your Doctor. I'm supposed to mention the odd folklore stuff but I think it would only make a mess of things.