Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Allium sativum L.


English Name : Garlic, Poor-mans-treacle, Clove garlic

Family : Liliaceae

Origin : Central Asia

Description
The leaves are long, narrow and flat like grass. The bulb is of a compound nature, consisting of numerous bulblets, known technically as 'cloves,' grouped together between the membraneous scales and enclosed within a whitish skin, which holds them as in a sac. The flowers are placed at the end of a stalk rising direct from the bulb and are whitish, grouped together in a globular head, or umbel, with an enclosing kind of leaf or spathae, and among them are small bulbils.

Parts Used : Bulb and plant

Herb Effects
Anthelmintic, antiasthmatic, anticholesterolemic, antiseptic, cancer, cholagogue, diaphoretic, diuretic, expectorant, febrifuge, stimulant, stomachic, tonic, vasodilator, lowers serum blood cholesterol (while increasing the level of HDL), lowers blood fats, stimulates detoxifying enzymes (from the liver), antioxidant, antibiotic, antiseptic, antispasmodic, ascaricide and certain other parasites.

Active Ingredients
Adenosine, ajoene, alanine, allicin, alliin, allyl propyl disulphide, alpha-phellandrene, alpha-tocopherol, arachidonic acid, arginine, aspartic acid, beta-phellandrene, biotin, caffeic acid, choline, citral, cycloallin, cystine, diallyl disulphide, diallyl-sulfide, diallyl-tetrasulfide, diallyl-trisulfide, ferulic acid, geraniol, glutamic acid, glutathione, glycine, histidine, isoleucine, methionine, nicotinic acid, p-coumaric acid, phenylalanine, quercetin, tryptophan, tyrosine (bulb); ascorbic acid, beta-carotene, niacin, riboflavin, thiamin (leaf, flower, bulb, shoot); beta-sitosterol, chlorogenic acid, kaempferol, oleanolic acid, oleic acid, p-hydroxy-benzoic acid, rutin, stigmasterol, succinic acid, taurine, (plant); ornithine (leaf).

Medicinal Use
Arteriosclerosis, arthritis, asthma, athlete's foot; bladder, kidney and ear (including earache) ailments, boils, bronchitis, cancer, canker sores, common cold, corns, cough, dysmenorrhea, indigestion, fever, infections, inflammations, influenza and leukemia.

Dosage
Syrup of Garlic, made by boiling the bulbs till soft and adding an equal quantity of vinegar to the water in which they have been boiled, and then sugared and boiled down to a syrup. The syrup is then poured over the boiled bulbs, which have been allowed to dry meanwhile, and kept in a jar. Each morning a bulb or two is to be taken, with a spoonful of the syrup for asthma.
An infusion of the bruised bulbs, given before and after every meal, has been considered of good effect in epilepsy.
A clove or two of Garlic, pounded with honey and taken two or three nights successively, is good in rheumatism.

Reference

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