Garlic and Cholesterol: How Garlic Helps in Reducing Cholesterol

Garlic happens to be one of the best options for lowering cholesterol levels in your body in a natural way. Garlic and cholesterol is a topic that has been investigated for several thousand years with the ancient Egyptians vouching (in 1550 B.C.) for fact that the human heart can benefit from garlic. Even the Romans (Dioscorides of Anazarbus) were positive about garlic clearing the arteries- a stunning remark to be made approximately 2000 years prior to the discovery of atherosclerosis.

Inspired by the East European folk healers, Vesselin Petkov (Bulgarian scientist), conducted several experiments to prove the importance of garlic as “cardiovascular medicine” to the entire world. But in what way does garlic help lower cholesterol level? Read on to find out how garlic helps in reducing cholesterol.

Can Garlic Actually Lower Cholesterol?

Among the several researches conducted on garlic usefulness in improving human health, the one that has gained much attention is its role in reducing cholesterol levels. Majority of the researches and studies conducted on humans and animals offer that garlic has the ability to bring down cholesterol levels.

Normally, cholesterol is produced the human liver, and it has been proven that garlic can reduce cholesterol production in the liver itself. It was observed in an experiment on rat liver cells, which were treated with garlic extract in lab dish, that the production of cholesterol lowered by an impressive 87 percent. The following compounds found in garlic, have proven to reduce cholesterol synthesis in human liver:

• Allicin
• Ajoene
• Diallyl disulfide
• S-allyl-cysteine
• 2-Vinly-4H- 1, 3-dithiin
• Methyl Ajoene

A significant study was also conducted by Dr. Andrew Neil and Dr. Christopher Silagy of Oxford University, London (1994). In their study of 16 trials with 952 participants, the collected data showed that on an average 12 percent of cholesterol was reduced within a 30-day timespan.

Also Read: Garlic and Cardiovascular Disease: Prevent and Cure Heart Related Ailments with Garlic

The trials included the use of fresh garlic, garlic oil, garlic powder and garlic extract, and the dose was limited between 600 mg and 900 mg. The best results came from trials that lasted 3 months.

Another meta-analysis conducted in 1993 showed that consuming one-half or one-full garlic clove every day can lower the overall serum cholesterol levels by a total of 9 percent.

In some studies it has also been found that garlic can lower triglyceride and LDL cholesterol (‘bad’ cholesterol) levels by 20 mg/dL, without it (garlic) affecting the HDL cholesterol (‘good’ cholesterol). However, garlic’s ability to lower cholesterol levels in humans depends highly on its dosage quantity. This means that if you consume more garlic, the cholesterol levels in your body will drop further. Read: Proven Benefits of Eating Raw Garlic on Empty Stomach

Garlic And Cholesterol- Things To Know:

Now that you know how garlic helps in reducing cholesterol¸ the first thing to do before you start taking garlic is consult with your primary healthcare provider. This is because there are chances that your medical condition or the medications you take may interact with your garlic consumption for lowering cholesterol levels.

Also, in case you are taking medications for blood thinning (anticoagulants), or will be undergoing surgery anytime soon, opting for garlic consumption may reduce your blood clotting ability. So, be sure to visit your doctor before you start taking garlic for reducing blood cholesterol levels.

Also Read: History of Garlic in Ancient Indian and Mesopotamian Civilizations