"Let food be thy medicine, and medicine be thy food”, these are the well-known words of the ancient Greek physician who was known as the father of Western medicine named Hippocrates. It was Hippocrates who actually used this special herb known as garlic to help treat several different medical conditions. Garlic is a very unique food in that it has many benefits and healing properties to it.

     Garlic has been used for many, many centuries by many different cultures and people today and is healthy for the human body.  An interesting fact about garlic is that it is considered a species of vegetable in the onion genus, Allium, that has a Binomial name of Allium sativum. Allium sativum is a bulb-like plant that can grow up to a whopping 3.3 feet in actual height while producing hermaphrodite flowers. Garlic is also pollinated by various bees, insects, butterflies, and moths and has relative vegetables which include the shallot, chive, leek, onion, and the Chinese onion. Its' scientific classification is from the Kingdom of Plantae.

    Garlic is from the Clade of monocots, from the order of Asparagales, from the family of Amaryllidaceae, the subfamily of Allioideae.                                       

 Garlic is also considered a food, an herb, and a vegetable to some. It has well over 70 active ingredients and is used in various creative ways. It is a very strong herb and increasing your garlic intake can be easy for the most part if you are determined to. A good friend of mine and myself have both eaten raw garlic cloves many times and have seen firsthand the amazing results by eating this very unique thing. After taking garlic, both of us have realized that garlic stabilizes our blood pressure, rids our bodies from harmful parasites in our gut, and helps to boost our immune systems for the most part.                                                    

Caution! This powerful herb can also cause bad breath for many. So beware before you even try this around certain, other people.  I do notice that when I do take this vegetable called Garlic, I tend to always expect to have that annoying garlic burning sensation in my stomach soon after chewing it up and swallowing it. Don’t worry though, this weird Garlic burning sensation is very normal after consuming this vegetable as it is all a part of the Garlic being digested.  Garlic is also known to help people shed fat and lose weight as well and contains many healthy compounds with very powerful medicinal properties.

     Oddly enough, It is very low in calories but at the same very high in nutrition. Garlic can fight off many diseases and the common cold while containing various active, natural compounds that can help reduce blood pressure in people who take it. Garlic is also known in greatly improving bad cholesterol levels in people and may even help in combating heart disease in some.  This special vegetable known as Garlic is not only a native vegetable to Central Asia but also to the Northeastern part of Iran and for a long period of time this vegetable has been a special seasoning all around the world. Garlic has a deep history  of many thousands of years of human use and consumption and has been used as both a common food flavoring and also as a very traditional medicine in different countries.

      Garlic was used for a food given to the poor and impoverished people in ancient Rome while the country of China is known to have produced around 80% of the world’s main supply of Garlic.

       The wonders and health benefits of this small clove called Garlic never ceases to amaze me. At the end of the day, its really quite amazing to realize that such a small root vegetable can so delicious! What do you think? Does Garlic really ward off vampires and werewolves at night? Is Garlic really a good symbol for blocking away evil spells and hexes? According to some ancient beliefs, this hot and spicy vegetable wonder is suppose to bring good fortune when eaten on an empty stomach. 

     I geuss these are just some of the questions that one may think of when it comes to Garlic!