Garlic has been known for ages as a natural remedy with many health benefits. Originally from India, eating garlic on an empty stomach is said to act like a natural antibiotic. Why on an empty stomach? Because at that time, bacteria are less resistant, making garlic more effective.
Its many benefits
Eating garlic first thing in the morning helps detoxify the body, expelling parasites and intestinal worms. It also offers protection against illnesses like typhus, diabetes, depression, and some cancers. Garlic improves blood circulation, lowers high blood pressure, and aids digestion. A 2001 study with 146 participants showed that those who took 1.8g of garlic had three times fewer colds. It supports the health of the heart, liver, and gallbladder, and helps with problems like diarrhea, nervous disorders, stomach pain, poor appetite, stress, and acne.
Garlic works both as prevention and treatment for diseases such as tuberculosis, pneumonia, colds, gout, bronchitis, asthma, hemorrhoids, constipation, ear infections, and whooping cough. Studies indicate that people who eat enough garlic have a lower risk of some cancers. It also protects the liver from toxins, boosts fertility, lowers blood sugar, and slows aging — the list goes on.
How to get the most out of garlic
The healing power of garlic comes from allicin and diallyl disulfide. Regularly eating garlic on an empty stomach can help you live healthier naturally!
If you dislike the smell, garlic supplements in tablet form are available at pharmacies and can be taken on an empty stomach.
Here are some traditional uses:
- For toothache, place a small piece of garlic on the sore tooth.
- Applied externally or as a poultice on the stomach, garlic can help with venomous bites and remove warts.
- For colds, boil garlic in water and inhale the steam.
- For rheumatism, crush garlic in olive oil and massage the mixture onto the skin each morning.
- To treat ear infections, put a few drops of garlic juice in the ear.
- For chronic bronchitis, macerate 40g of chopped garlic in 100g of 90% alcohol for 6 days, then strain and take a glass each morning on an empty stomach.
- For dementia, mix 1kg chopped garlic with juice from 24 lemons, let it sit for 24 days, then take a teaspoon daily on an empty stomach.
- For kidney stones, steep two tablespoons of chopped garlic in 1/4 liter boiling water for 20 minutes. Drink one glass in the morning and another before bed.
- To ease painful periods, eat 2 to 3 garlic cloves daily on an empty stomach during the first days of menstruation.