Herbal Remedies: Garlic

     After finishing up my herbology course, my belief in food as your best medicine solidified. God has literally given us all we need to be healthy. Our ancestors and especially our Native Americans knew this and how to use the amazing herbs and spices that grow for our benefit. It is sad that this knowledge has been replaced with drugs with a myriad of side effects. The very drugs themselves we use to feel better actually make us sicker. There are so many God given foods that are every bit as powerful as drugs without the harmful side effects. I want to share some of these amazing herbs and spices over the next little while.

     Today let's talk about garlic. We all know garlic is good, right? Nothing new. But, how many of us know how good and what to use it for? Let me share: Garlic is right up there with being one of the most prized foods on the planet. Not only does it keep vampires away, it is an incredibly immune boosting plant full of antioxidants and heart healthy properties. Garlic works by boosting the bodies immune cell activity. When you chew garlic, or eat it in a grinded form, the release of allicin acts as a powerful antibiotic that inhibits germs to grow. 1 milligram of allicin has a potency of 15 units of penicillin!! Dang. And it won't mess up your gut!! Why don't we all have this in our arsenal? Here are some other fun facts for you: garlic lowers blood pressure, kills cancer cells, helps defend against allergies, regulates blood sugar, eliminates parasites, reduces the common cold by over 50% and thins blood similar to aspirin. Garlic helps the production of bile to help reduce the fat in the liver, lowers cholesterol and helps keep the blood and vessels healthy. There are a plethora of studies about garlic which have stood the test of time. Garlic should be our go to for sore throats, ear infections, colds, infections, etc. We should gravitate to the natural before ever reaching for the synthetic and harmful. If we did that, really we shouldn't even need the synthetic. There are many garlic supplements out there if you don't want to chew on a clove raw. I love Allimax. It comes in liquid as well for the littles. Stay healthy my friends!