How to Use Garlic for Medicinal Purposes

Garlic has been hailed as a healing herb for thousands of years. It has been used by primitive vets as well as early healers as far back as 5,000 years ago in the Middle East, and 3,000 years ago in China. It is an antioxidant, an antimicrobial (anti-biotic, anti-viral, and anti-fungal), and promotes great blood sugar levels as well as cholesterol levels by lowering LDL cholesterol.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• Garlic cloves

Using Garlic for in Food for Health Benefits

1. Ingesting garlic regularly in your diet is one of the best ways to take advantage of the properties of garlic.
2. Put fresh crushed garlic on meat. This is a great way to make meat healthier to eat. Anti-microbial properties take effect when allicin is activated by crushing a clove.
3. Mince garlic cloves and add them into greens or salads to garner the effects of raw garlic. The oils from the cloves inhibit blood clotting, lower cholesterol, and reduce levels of nitrate in stomachs.

Garlic Oil Usage

4. Help stave off infection by treating an open wound with a garlic oil soaked cloth. You can also wash wounds in garlic for the same purpose.
5. Garlic rubs and poultices using the natural oils of garlic can be used and placed on infected areas of the skin, as well as on areas of the body that are infected inside, usually the chest and back for respiratory ailments.
6. Inhaling garlic oils in a diffuser (or placed on a cotton ball) can treat respiratory ailments.
7. Feed a clove to your pets to help prevent fleas. Garlic is part of the onion family, which is poisonous to dogs. Dogs may have garlic in limited quantities, if they are not allergic to it.

Tips & Warnings

• Store your garlic in an airy place, a mesh bag or any open air vegetable storage device.
• Avoid putting garlic in the refrigerator or a closed container.
• The effects of allicin will decrease as a the garlic is cooked.
• Take great care when using rubs and poultices. The caustic nature of garlic oil extract can cause skin irritation or blistering.
• Take caution when feeding garlic as a supplement to your dogs. Watch for symptoms of allergies or other discomforts when using garlic. Give proper amounts for your dog's weight.