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Here’s Why You Need to Eat More Garlic

Fill Your Plate

07.25.2014

Garlic Cloves — Don’t miss how garlic plays an important role in our health (photo credit: BigStockPhoto.com)

People have been using garlic to add flavor and aroma to their food for thousands of years and some cultures have used it for medicinal purposed for just as long. But it is only recently that garlic has been making headlines here as a key component of a healthy diet. Research into the preventative and medicinal uses of garlic has shown that including garlic in your regular diet can have some pretty significant health benefits.

Consuming Garlic May Decrease Cancer Risk

A study that was conducted by the Jiangsu Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention in China found that eating raw garlic significantly impacts your risk for developing lung cancer. The findings, which were published in the journal Cancer Prevention Research, indicate that participants who reported eating raw garlic as part of their regular diet at least twice a week had a 44% decrease in their risk for developing lung cancer.

Other research findings show that consuming garlic may reduce pre-cancerous lesions in the gastric system and slow down the growth and progression of similar lesions in the large bowel.

Another study found that selenium, which is found in garlic, may help prevent cancer from developing in the first place.

Consuming Garlic May Decrease Cardiovascular Problems

Other research into the effect of consuming garlic found significant benefits in terms of common cardiovascular problems. One study found that when garlic therapy was used in conjunction with other supportive treatments on coronary artery calcification it may slow progression of the condition.

Research has also shown garlic to be effective at improving factors that are known to contribute to cardiovascular problems like high cholesterol, high blood pressure. Eating garlic regularly helped lower cholesterol and blood pressure while also lowering the levels of an amino acid, called homocysteine, that indicates coronary artery disease.

How to Get More Garlic in Your Diet

Garlic is an aromatic and can be added to almost any kind of cuisine. It can help develop flavor in soup and will add a little kick to any salad. Sauté it lightly with meat or veggies or add it raw to sandwich fillings like chicken salad. Here are some other great ways to get more garlic on your plate.