garlic

Health – Nature’s Substitute for Penicillin

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When one thinks about penicillin, the words infection, disease and doctors’ offices usually come to mind. But if you have a natural mind, one of the first things that come to mind is garlic. Raw garlic has many wonderful health properties. It is not eaten readily because we do not want to offend the people around us with its lingering strong odor. But when you do not feel well and want to avoid sharing germs with others, that is an especially good time to pull out the garlic.  As you read the following you will understand why it is called Russian penicillin.

Stinky Fresh crushed garlic

Garlic has a potent history. According to the NYU (New York University) Langone Medical Center:

From Roman antiquity through World War I, garlic poultices were used to prevent wound infections. The famous microbiologist Louis Pasteur performed some of the original work showing that garlic could kill bacteria. In 1916, the British government issued a general plea for the public to supply it with garlic in order to meet wartime needs. Garlic was called Russian penicillin during World War II because, after running out of antibiotics, the Russian government turned to this ancient treatment for its soldiers.

Fresh crushed garlic is the star of nature’s antibiotic, and the “fresh” part here is very important. Minced garlic in a jar will not do. When fresh garlic is crushed, a chemical reaction that causes sulfenic acid is set off. But sulfenic acid is unstable and breaks down steadily into another unstable compound called allicin, which has a strong antibiotic property. Let the fresh minced or crushed garlic sit for about 15 minutes before using it in order to build up a greater amount of allicin (which is what we want here).

Spicy Cayenne pepper

Cayenne pepper is a very powerful spice that, like garlic, has been used for its health benefits throughout history.

According to Dr. Patrick Quillin, author of The Healing Power of Cayenne Pepper, he says,

“Cayenne pepper has been prized for thousands of years for its healing power. Folklore from around the world recounts amazing results using cayenne pepper in simple healing and in baffling health problems. But cayenne pepper is not just a healer from ancient history. Recent clinical studies have been conducted on many of the old-time health applications for this miracle herb. Again and again, the therapeutic value of cayenne pepper has been medically validated.”

The Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations states that cayenne pepper fights infection and inflammation, and the University of Maryland Medical Center has reported that the capsaicin in cayenne peppers may offer an effective treatment for ear infections.

Sweet Raw honey

While, I really do just try to put raw honey in absolutely everything I make, it has a real purpose here. First of all, it makes the garlic and cayenne go down easier, but most importantly, raw honey boosts immune function, and has strong anti-viral and anti-fungal properties.

In Jethro Kloss’s book, Back to Eden, (1982), page 216, he says, “Red pepper is one of the most wonderful herb medicines we have. We do wonderful things with it that we are not able to do with any other known herb. It should never be classed with black pepper, vinegar, or mustard. These are irritating, while red pepper is very soothing. While red pepper smarts a little, it can be put in an open wound either in a fresh wound or an old ulcer, and it is very healing instead of irritating; but black pepper, mustard, and vinegar are irritating to an open wound and do not heal. Red Pepper is one of the most stimulating herbs known to man with no harm or reaction.”

I am very thankful for the little things which God has provided for us in times of illness.

How does this work exactly?

  • Combine 1 crushed garlic clove (that has been sitting out for 15 minutes) with one teaspoon raw honey and ½ teaspoon of cayenne pepper. Take about ¼ of the mixture into your mouth and swallow it down with a sip of warm tea or water. Do this until the mixture is gone.
  • As you would with a prescribed antibiotic, you should do this 2-3 times daily and continue for a day or two after the symptoms disappear.
  • Of course, seek medical attention if your symptoms are not alleviated.

https://bodyunburdened.com/natures-antibiotic-a-natural-virus-infection-fighter/

Health – Save that Garlic Sprout

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What do you do with that garlic bulb that has begun to sprout and looks like it has passed its prime? You may be surprised to find out that that little sprout has more nutritional value than the original bulb, even though it was loaded with nutrition and healing powers.

“ ‘Sprouted’ garlic – old garlic bulbs with bright green shoots emerging from the cloves – is considered to be past its prime and usually ends up in the garbage can. But scientists are reporting in ACS’s (American Chemical Society) Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry that this type of garlic has even more heart-healthy antioxidant activity than its fresher counterparts.

“Jong-Sang Kim and colleagues note that people have used garlic for medicinal purposes for thousands of years. Today, people still celebrate its healthful benefits. Eating garlic or taking garlic supplements is touted as a natural way to reduce cholesterol levels, blood pressure and heart disease risk. It even may boost the immune system and help fight cancer. But those benefits are for fresh, raw garlic. Sprouted garlic has received much less attention. When seedlings grow into green plants, they make many new compounds, including those that protect the young plant against pathogens. Kim’s group reasoned that the same thing might be happening when green shoots grow from old heads of garlic. Other studies have shown that sprouted beans and grains have increased antioxidant activity, so the team set out to see if the same is true for garlic.

“They found that garlic sprouted for five days had higher antioxidant activity than fresher, younger bulbs, and it had different metabolites, suggesting that it also makes different substances. Extracts from this garlic even protected cells in a laboratory dish from certain types of damage. ‘Therefore, sprouting may be a useful way to improve the antioxidant potential of garlic,’ they conclude.” www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/273314.php

The study’s author Jong-Sang Kim PhD, says, “Plants are very susceptible to attack from bacteria, viruses, and insects during sprouting. This causes them to produce a variety of chemicals called phytoalexins to defend themselves. Most of these are toxic to microorganisms and insects, but beneficial to human health.” www.prevention.com/food/healthy-eating-tips/why-old-sprouted-garlic-actually-good-you

Here is another interesting tidbit on garlic sprouts.

“Although garlic (Allium sativum) has been extensively studied for its health benefits, sprouted garlic has received little attention. We hypothesized that sprouting garlic would stimulate the production of various phytochemicals that improve health. Ethanolic extracts from garlic sprouted for different periods had variable antioxidant activities when assessed with in vitro assays, including the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl radical scavenging activity assay and the oxygen radical absorbance capacity assay. Extracts from garlic sprouted for 5 days had the highest antioxidant activity, whereas extracts from raw garlic had relatively low antioxidant activity. Furthermore, sprouting changed the metabolite profile of garlic: the metabolite profile of garlic sprouted for 5–6 days was distinct from the metabolite profile of garlic sprouted for 0–4 days, which is consistent with the finding that garlic sprouted for 5 days had the highest antioxidant activity. Therefore, sprouting may be a useful way to improve the antioxidant potential of garlic.” http://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/jf500603v

We now understand that garlic sprouted for five days has been found to have higher antioxidant activity than fresher, younger bulbs. Sprouting your garlic might be a useful way to improve its antioxidant potential. This really makes sense when you consider the nutritional changes that occur in plants when they sprout. Don’t throw out those sprouts—eat them!