Garlic can prevent cancer?
Can eating garlic really prevent cancer? In 2018, a study by China Medical University was published in the Asia Pacific Journal of Clinical Oncology. A paired analysis was performed on 833 colorectal cancer patients and 833 healthy controls according to age, sex, and place of residence. Studies have shown that people who eat the most onions and garlic have a 79% lower risk of colorectal cancer than those who eat the least. The researchers found that, Eating about 50g of onion and garlic vegetables every day can reduce the risk of colorectal cancer.
Studies have shown that organic sulfides in garlic have anti-tumor effects. The main known anti-cancer mechanisms include:
- Organic sulfides in garlic can inhibit the proliferation of tumor cells,
- block the progression of the tumor cell cycle,
- It has a direct inhibitory effect on the proliferation of tumor cell lines established in vitro, such as human breast cancer cells and prostate cancer cells.
- Garlic and its organic sulfide components can eliminate free radicals and resist oxidation, thereby avoiding DNA oxidative damage.
But don’t eat a lot of garlic because of these research conclusions, thinking that eating garlic can prevent cancer. We all know that some foods are better for our health than others. However, our bodies are extremely complex. If you want to rely on a single food to control cancer, it is too simple to imagine it. The most important principle is to develop a balanced diet and living habits, and to choose real and nutritious food.
Can Garlic Lower Blood Pressure?
Studies have shown that garlic can increase the synthesis of nitric oxide in the human body. Can help soothe muscles and relax blood vessels to dilate them. This phenomenon can relieve high blood pressure. Another study in people with high blood pressure showed that garlic extract reduced systolic and diastolic blood pressure.
However, if you really suffer from high blood pressure, instead of hoping to relieve it by eating garlic, it is better to start with developing good eating and living habits, such as reducing intake of salt and alcohol.
How to eat the most nutritious garlic?
Garlic is a food that is both healthy and delicious. How should you eat garlic to reap its health benefits?
Through the above introduction, the sulfide in garlic has anti-tumor effect. However, there are no sulfides in fresh and whole garlic. Fresh whole garlic contains two substances: alliin and allinase.
Under normal circumstances, alliin and allinase exist independently and stably.
When the garlic is processed or broken physically and mechanically, such as mashing the garlic into mashed garlic. Alliin and allinase contact each other to catalyze the formation of allicin from alliin. After allicin is further decomposed, it forms sulfur compounds with a strong odor.
Therefore, when eating garlic, whether it is eaten raw or cooked, remember to chop the garlic and leave it for 10-15 minutes, which is conducive to the production of allicin. If garlic is heated or roasted right after it’s been chopped, the enzymes are deactivated by the heat and allicin won’t form. If you must cook and roast the whole garlic, you can cut off the head of the garlic clove and leave it for a while, so as to retain part of the active substances. However, high-temperature baking will destroy the biological activity and nutrients of garlic. When eating garlic, it should be eaten raw, or cooked with oil after being broken, and it is best not to boil for more than 20 minutes. In addition, it is best not to eat a lot of raw garlic on an empty stomach.
How to get rid of bad breath after eating garlic?
Have you tried many ways to get rid of the garlic smell? chewing gum? Mouthwash?
In fact, apples, lettuce, mint, etc. have the magical effect of removing garlic. Because they all contain phenolic compounds, they are the nirvana to dissolve the garlic smell.