The Common Mistakes We Do When Using Garlic As an Antibiotic

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Learn the common mistakes in using garlic as an antibiotic. Check out the article we found over at Healthy and Natural World.

The fact that many people opt for this humble gift of nature when trying to get over an infection or malady. You can use garlic to make a natural syrup for chest infections and in addition garlic can be used to reduce the risk of lung cancer.

BUT If you want garlic to do its job and preserve your health, it’s important to know how to use it properly. Otherwise, its health benefits are limited, and you might not get the positive results you’re looking for. If you are trying to use garlic as a natural medicine you need to avoid a number of common mistakes.

Common mistakes people make when using garlic in a medicinal way

Mistake #1 – using cooked garlic

Cooking garlic is completely acceptable if you are using it to spice up your food. However, cooking destroys the garlic’s active ingredient – allicin. Allicin is one of the sulfur-containing compounds found in garlic that are collectively known as thiosulfinates. Allicin gets activated when raw garlic is chewed, chopped or crushed. But, it gets deactivated by heat, so that is why cooking garlic lowers its healing potential and should be avoided.

Here is a great tip when cooking garlic to preserve its maximum healing benefits: Crush garlic, then wait 10 minutes before cooking to maximize health benefits. Allowing the crushed garlic to stand for 10 minutes before cooking further enhances formation of allicin, ensures the maximum synthesis of allicin, and also makes it more stable and resistant to the heat of cooking. Then cook it on low or medium heat for a short period of time (up to 15 minutes).

How to use garlic the right way: eat it raw

Mistake #2 – taking garlic in a pill form

To avoid the smell and potent taste, some people decide to take garlic pills instead. As is often the case, the easy way doesn’t really work. As mentioned earlier, to activate the garlic’s healing compound, you need to ingest raw, crushed garlic. No pill, powder or dried form can match the therapeutic potential of garlic in its natural state.

The smelly phosphorus gas disappears when garlic is dried, processed or cooked, but so do some of the health benefits. Dried garlic retains anti-oxidant properties and can help fight free radicals – but never to the same extent as raw garlic does. If you struggle with raw garlic, just remind yourself that chewing it has been proven to be as effective as taking penicillin in some cases.

How to use garlic the right way: take garlic in its natural form

Mistake #3 – using old garlic that has lost its freshness

Make sure that the bulbs you get are fresh and haven’t been sitting around for a long time. Fresh garlic has a green strip that runs in the middle of the cloves. As always, organic garlic is by far the healthier option.

How to use garlic the right way: use fresh garlic

Should You Eat Raw Garlic On an Empty Stomach?

It is sometimes advised to chew garlic first thing in the morning, before breakfast, and even before having water (you might need a glass of water to alleviate the burns, especially if you’re taking more than one clove). This regimen has yielded good results.

However, keep in mind that, for some people, raw garlic on an empty stomach can cause irritation to the digestive tract. A study published in 2005 in the American Family Physician noted a report from the literature that suggested that consumption of excessive amounts of raw garlic, especially on an empty stomach, can cause gastrointestinal upset, flatulence, and changes in the intestinal flora.

It’s always advisable to start with small amounts and observe your body’s reaction. This is important also because some people have an allergy to garlic. They might develop a range of symptoms, including bloating, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting and different skin reactions (rash, eczema). People who are raw garlic intolerant might still be able to consume it in small amounts, but their symptoms can appear when the dose gets increased. However, in most people, ingesting garlic produces no side effects.

Next Article: Is The Garlic You Are Buying…Bleached From China?

Read full article: Avoid These 6 Common Mistakes When Using Garlic As an Antibiotic



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