Garlic Health Benefits Revealed
 

Garlic Health Benefits Revealed

from PharmaGazette
http://www.pharmagazette.com/2007/10..._revealed.html

Garlic has been touted for it's anti-bacterial, antifungal properties and cardiovascular effect for centuries and U.S, scientists may have figured out the reasoning behind it.

Researchers at the University of Alabama found that contrary to previous rGarlicesearch, that focused solely on Allicin (the organic polysulphides), there was another piece to the puzzle. They believe that the chemical messenger, hydrogen sulphide (H2S), that is produced when allicin and other active compounds are metabolized, is more important.

H2S is essential, at low levels, for cellular signaling to relax blood vessels and enhance blood flow. After several experiments scientist found that adding a rat aorta to a solution containing organic polysulphides caused the heart blood vessel to relax as it produced H2S.

The authors of the study believe that the allicin and H2S combination is the reason why previous studies had found conflicting data about the benefits of garlic on halting cardiovascular disease.

"In addition, our results suggest that the capacity to produce H2S can be used to standardize garlic dietary supplements," the authors wrote.

[Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences]

NOt trying to be...
 

cheeky:D with you Carolyn, but hasn't it proven that H2S is the major gas in flatus? Which would mean that ANY sulfur containing molecule has, as is it's final metabolite, either hydrogen sulfide or methane sulfide. So that the sulfur containing amino acids like cysteine, and all the sulfur containg molecules in onions, shallots, leeks, etc, Should provide the same health benefits that garlic does.
I have read a lot about garlic over the years and the chemistry has been fairly well elucidated. Early work suggested that garlic had significant health benefits, especially in the cardiovascular area, but a few later reports (sorry, i can't find references here) seemed to nullify earlier work.
I for one don't care though, my annual consumption of garlic alone is measured in kilograms. YOu could say, i stink:D