Latin Name :
Allium sativum
Family :
Liliaceae
Common Name :
Garlic, Poor Man's Treacle,
Ail, Lasan, Rosina
Sanskrit Name :
Rasona, Arista, Lasuona
Parts Used : Bulb
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Plant Description
:
Garlic is
cultivated in most parts of India. The
major producing regions are Madhya
Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Orissa,
Rajasthan and Punjab.
Allium
sativum is a perennial that
can grow 2 feet high or more. The Garlic
plant have 6-12 long, narrow and flat
like grass leaves. The most important
part of this plant for medicinal
purposes is the bulb. The bulb consists
of numerous bulblets, known as 'cloves'
held between the papery membrane and
enclosed within a whitish skin as a sac.
Each bulb is made up of 4 to 20 cloves,
and each clove weighs about 1 gram. The
flowers rise direct from the bulb and
are white in color. Allium sativum has
an annual life cycle. Allium sativum
flourishes best in a rich, moist, sandy
soil with lot of sunshine.
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Chemicals :
The main active
ingredient in garlic is Alliin. Allicin is the
active compound that gives garlic its
characteristic odor and many of its healing
benefits. Other sulphur compounds are
thiosulfinates, gamma glutamylcysteine peptides
and various Cu-peptides, 2 mercapto-L-cysteins,
anthocyanins, glycosides of kaempferol and
quercetin, polysaccharides, allinase, sterols,
hydrocarbons, sativin I & II, scordinines A & B.
Actions :
Antibacterial,
Antifungal,
Anti-inflammatory,
Anthelmintic,
Antiseptic,
Antiviral,
Hypotensive-vasodilator,
Cholagogue,
Antispasmodic,
Decreases blood
cholesterol,
Increases HDL,
Hypoglycemic,
Expectorant,
Diaphoretic,
Antioxidant,
Antineoplastic,
Carminative.
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Therapuetic Uses
:
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Garlic
may prevent
blood clots and
destroy plaque
preventing
atherosclerosis.
Hence, garlic
does reduce the
chances of
stroke, heart
attacks, and PVD.
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Garlic may also
be beneficial
for risk factors
form heart
disease,
including high
blood pressure,
high
cholesterol, and
diabetes as it
helps reduce the
level of
Homocysteine
similar to
cholestrol.
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Raw garlic may
lowerer blood
pressure; but
fairly small.
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Garlic has been
used as a
traditional
dietary
supplement for
diabetes in
Asia, Europe,
and the Middle
East.
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Garlic has a
traditional
history for
prevention and
cure of common
cold and
influenza.
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Studies have
suggest that
garlic may have
some anti-cancer
activity.
Dietary garlic
may offer some
protection
against the
development of
breast,
prostate, and
throat
cancers,colon
and stomach
cancers.
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Garlic inhibits
the growth of
different
species of
bacteria,
including
Mycobacterium
tuberculosis,
the organism
responsible for
tuberculosis.
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Large quantities
of fresh, raw
garlic have
antiparasitic
properties
against common
type of
intestinal
parasite like
the roundworm.
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