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Garlic is an ancient bulbous aromatic herb which is cultivated as a herbaceous annual spice in India and several other countries around the world. Besides its use in culinary, Garlic is one of the oldest authenticated herbs which has been still in use in Indian and other traditional medicinal systems. Garlic’s medicinal efficacy has been studied in experimental studies also and it is now known that Allicin [S-(2-propenyl)-2-propene-1-sulfinothioate] is the biologically active sulfur-containing compound of garlic which contributes to its smell and taste also. Botanically, it belongs to Allium genera and Allium sativum L. (Garlic) is the second most used species after Allium cepa L. (onion) in this genus.

Botanical Classification of Allium sativum L. (Garlic)
  • Kingdom: Plantae (Plants or flora)
  • Subkingdom: Tracheobionta (Vascular plants, the plants with Xylem and Phloem tissues)
  • Superdivision: Spermatophyta (Seed generating plants)
  • Division: Magnoliophyta (Flowering plants or angiosperms)
  • Class: Liliopsida  (Monocotyledons or Monocots)
  • Order: Liliales
  • Family: Amaryllidaceae or Liliaceae (Lily family)
  • Genus: Allium L
  • Species: Allium sativum L. (cultivated garlic)
photo of white garlic bulbs
Photo by Engin Akyurt on Pexels.com

*Medicinal Activities of Garlic

There are several publications which have reported various medicinal activities of garlic, and Batiha et al. reviewed several of these activities in journal Nutrients. 2020 Mar; 12(3): 872.

  • Antibacterial Activity
  • Antifungal Activity
  • Anti-Protozoal Activity
  • Antiviral Activity
  • Antioxidant Activity
  • Anti-Inflammatory Activity
  • Anticancer Activity
  • Anti-Alzheimer’s Disease Activity
  • Anti-Hypertensive
  • Anti-Diabetic
  • Anti- Obesity
Batiha et al. Nutrients. 2020 Mar; 12(3): 872. CCBY 4.0

Scientific References:

  1. Adaki S, Adaki R, Shah K, Karagir A. Garlic: Review of literature. Indian J Cancer. 2014 Oct-Dec;51(4):577-81. doi: 10.4103/0019-509X.175383. [PMID: 26842201]
  2. El-Saber Batiha G, Magdy Beshbishy A, et al. Bioactive Compounds and Biological Functions of Garlic (Allium sativum L.). Nutrients. 2020 Mar 24;12(3):872. doi: 10.3390/nu12030872. [PMID: 32213941]
  3. Shang A, Cao SY, Xu XY, et al. Bioactive Compounds and Biological Functions of Garlic (Allium sativum L.). Foods. 2019 Jul 5;8(7):246. doi: 10.3390/foods8070246. [PMID: 31284512]

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By Dr. S.G.

With a PhD in ethnopharmacological/nutraceutical research (18 PUBMED cited articles) and 20+ years of experience in life sciences, Dr S.G. is the founder of www.indianfoodsimplified.com He is a caring dad of three, a loving husband, and a biotechnology and nutritional ethnomedicine enthusiast. He is passionate about "Indian Food Simplified" website/YouTube channel with the vision of sharing quality information and personal experiences with global community!