Eat Garlic to Protect Your Heart

Eating good quantities of garlic on a regular basis can help your heart remain fit. While this fact has been known for a long time, researchers have just managed to crack the mystery of how and why garlic is so beneficial for the heart.

According to researchers at the University of Alabama in Birmingham, the key to garlic’s heart benefits is allicin. This is the compound that breaks down into the foul-smelling sulphur compounds which turn breath sour upon eating garlic.

The sulphur compounds react with red blood cells to produce hydrogen sulphide which in turn relaxes blood vessels and keeps blood flowing smoothly. Hydrogen sulphide is an obnoxious gas that smells like rotten eggs. It is generally used in making stink bombs.

When it low concentrations, it makes it easier for cells to communicate with each other. Inside blood vessels, it relaxes cells that form the lining of the vessels and allows blood vessels to dilate. Dilation of the blood vessels leads to reduction in blood pressure and an increase in the blood’s capacity to carry oxygen to essential organs. This whole process reduces the pressure on the heart.

For their study, researchers led by Dr. David Kraus bathed blood vessels in rats in a solution of crushed garlic juice. The researchers found significant changes in tension in the blood vessels with tension dropping by 72%.

Not only did the pressure drop, the researchers also observed that red blood cells immediately began emitting hydrogen sulphide when they were exposed to even minute amounts of juice extracted from supermarket garlic. Experiments revealed that the chemical reaction primarily took place on the surface of the blood cells.

According to the researchers, it might be possible to use hydrogen sulphide production in red blood cells to standardise dietary garlic supplements. UK experts on the other hand warn that taking garlic supplements might cause side effects.

Talking about their study published in Proceedings of National Academy of Sciences, Dr. David Kraus said, “Our results suggest garlic in the diet is a very good thing. Certainly in areas where garlic consumption is high, such as the Mediterranean and the Far East, there is a low incidence of cardiovascular disease.”

Judy O’Sullivan, a cardiac nurse at the British Heart Foundation said, “This interesting study suggests that garlic may provide some heart health benefits. However, there remains insufficient evidence to support the notion of eating garlic as medicine in order to reduce the risk of developing coronary heart disease.”

“Having garlic as part of a varied diet is a matter of personal choice. It is important to note that large amounts in supplement form may interact with blood thinning drugs and could increase the risk of bleeding,” she added.

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