General Description

Garlic belongs to the same family as the onion. Both these herbs have been given special importance in Ayurveda due to their immense curative properties. The first recorded incidence of garlic as a medicinal herb dates as back as 4500 B.C. when the pyramid builders in Egypt were made to eat garlic cloves everyday for building their health. It has also been recommended by Hippocrates, who is regarded as the Father of Medicine.

Garlic is a biennial herb, but it is generally cultivated as an annual herb for convenience. Morphologically, it is a short herb with fibrous roots, a condensed stem and flattened leaves. The separate cloves of the garlic are enclosed together to form a single bulb. There could be anywhere between six and thirty-five cloves in one bulb of garlic.

It is called as lahsuna in the Indian language and its binomial name is Allium sativum. It contains all the vitamins necessary in the human diet, such as thiamin, riboflavin, niacin (B complex vitamins) and ascorbic acid (vitamin C). Garlic contains minerals such as calcium, phosphorus and iron. It also contains iodine, sulfur and chlorine in trace amounts. Besides all these, garlic contains allicin, allisatin I and allisatin II, all of which have been identified to be agents helpful in bringing down high blood pressure.

Properties

Garlic is known for the following curative properties:-

(i) Garlic contains antiseptic properties. Hence it is used in preventing infections.
(ii) Garlic is hypotensive, i.e. it has capacity to bring down blood pressure.
(iii) Garlic is a stimulant for appetite.
(iv) Due to its rich vitamin and mineral content, garlic is very good for the hair.
(v) Garlic increases the inner body strength and vitality.
(vi) Garlic can reduce cholesterol accumulated in the arteries. That explains its widespread use in the treatment of heart problems.
(vii) The strong juices of the garlic dissolve the mucus content in the respiratory tract.
(viii) Garlic increases perspiration, which helps in the removal of the toxins from the sweat pores.
(ix) Garlic is anti-inflammatory and antispasmodic in nature.
(x) Garlic has notable aphrodisiacal properties. It is used in the treatment of many sexual problems.

Uses

Garlic is almost worshipped in Ayurvedic medicine since it is a single treatment for a wide variety of diseases. The following are the diseases in which garlic proves to be very beneficial.

(i) Acne
Garlic is used in the treatment of acne. If the pimples are rubbed with a cut clove of garlic several times a day, then they will disappear without leaving a scar behind. Garlic must also be included in the diet since it is a blood-purifier and can treat acne from within.

(ii) Asthma
Garlic is a sure remedy for asthma patients. Each night before retiring to bed, asthmatic patients must drink a glassful of milk in which three cloves of garlic have been boiled. Another remedy is very popular in making asthmatic attacks less severe. It is as follows: Peel a clove of garlic, crush it and boil it in 120 milliliters of pure malt vinegar. Cool it, then strain it and add an equal quantity of honey in it. Preserve this syrup in a clean bottle. Take one or two teaspoons of this syrup with a decoction of fenugreek twice each day, after darkness sets in.