Garlic has lots of health benefits. But instead of making it into a dish, you can just eat it right away – raw. It may sound peculiar as we probably know garlic has that pungent smell to it. However, eating raw garlic brings a lot of health benefits you’ve never thought of before. Here are the 6 health benefits of eating raw garlic (which you can do right away!).
1. Lowers Blood Pressure
Who would’ve thought that eating raw garlic can lower blood pressure? Garlic contains allicin— perhaps the most beneficial, natural high blood pressure remedy. When you dice, chew or crush raw garlic, it releases an enzyme which then releases allicin. Be sure to consume the chopped, crushed or diced garlic within two hours when the allicin is activated.
Try to consume fresh raw garlic daily at least 1/3 to ½ grams to lower blood pressure. If you think you can eat more, consult with your doctor first—especially if you are on certain medications or have an allergic reaction after consuming it.
2. Boosting The Immune System
As the coronavirus cases in some places are soaring again, you might want to try to eat raw garlic as studies suggest it may boost the immune system. Garlic contains allicin which is a strong antibiotic as well.
3. Lowers Cholesterol Levels
Back in 2016, UCLA did studies on garlic. Their results suggested that garlic helps lower cholesterol levels up to 7.4-29.8 mg/dL. Although cooked garlic works well on lowering the cholesterol, consuming raw garlic does even better. In fact, the studies used aged garlic extract, but if it’s hard to find, you can use raw garlic instead of cooked garlic for a better result.
4. Anti-Aging
Studies found that garlic has rich antioxidant properties that help rejuvenate skin. Not only that, antioxidant properties also help prevent or delay chronic diseases associated with aging such as cancer, diabetes, hypertension, etc. If you’re looking for a natural herb that rejuvenates your skin, try consuming garlic. Raw garlic is, of course, the easiest and best choice.
5. Fights Cold and Flu
Another benefit of consuming allicin, one of the active ingredients contained in garlic, is reducing the severity of cold and flu. The National Institute of Health did a study in 2014 where 146 healthy volunteers are given garlic supplements for 3 months. The result shows that 63% of the volunteers succeed to lower the risk of getting a cold. They also stated that you can eat about 3 to 4 cloves of garlic per day to hasten the recovery process. Again, raw is best.
6. Help With Hair Growth
Using too much heat or chemicals on your hair can damage it. If that happens, try consuming garlic, better when it’s raw. Garlic contains antimicrobial properties which are able to fight germs and bacteria. Did you know that germs and bacteria are the main reasons why your scalp is damaged? And yes, damaged scalp prevents hair growth as well.
So next time you’re having a seafood feast or trying out a new shampoo that it doesn’t work well on you, try consuming raw garlic for its long list of benefits. Not everybody likes the stinky smell of it, but hey—it’s one of the easiest remedies to find and cheap as well.
WORDS: Toksa Andana