Allium, Garlic, Da Suan 大蒜

Da Suan (TCM)
Lashuna (Ayurveda)
Lehsun (Unani)
Sgog skya, སྒོག་སྐྱ (Tibetan)
Se Sar (Sumerian)
Sumu (Akkadian)

Herbarius latinus, Petri, 1485

Ortus Sanitatis, Meydenbach, 1491

New Kreuterbuch, Matthiolus, 1563

Krauterbuch, Rihel, 1565

Botanical name:

Allium sativum

Parts used:

Bulb

Temperature & Taste:

Hot, dry. Pungent. Ayurveda says Garlic has all tastes except Sour.
Heat, dries, opens discusses, thins

Classification:

2A APERIENT MEDICINES. 2B ATTENUATERS. 2C INCIDERS.
2G. CLEANSING. 2M. DRAWING
3C. ALEXIPHARMIC. 3E. DIURETIC. 3G. EMMENAGOGUE
3J. INCREASE SEMEN. 3P. ANTHELMINTIC
4e. STOMACHIC. 4k. ARTHRITIC
TCM:
S. Worms and Parasites T. External Medicines

Uses:

1. Resists all types of Poisons;

-Plague, Infection, Epidemic diseases (with vinegar)
-used to prevent infection during Epidemics.
-Cold, Flu; Cholera, Typhoid
-internally and topically for venomous Bites
-“Garlic taken with wine, is useful in Insect sting and Snake-bite cases; we have personally tested it.” (Avicenna)
-Poison of Aconite and Henbane (Pliny)
-acute Gastroenteritis; Dysentery
-demonstrated broad-spectrum antibacterial, anti-viral and anti-fungal (see research below)
-proven effect against various Poisons and Toxins (see research below)
-Cancer; Garlic juice or Garlic oil; IV injections have been used in China

2. Stops Wind, Clears Damp;

-Apoplexy; Epilepsy

3. Warms the Stomach:

-internally and externally for Wind and Colic

4. Warms the Lungs, clears Cold Phlegm:

-Coughs, Chronic Bronchitis (BHP) (juice can be applied to the Navel and soles of the Feet)
-Asthma, Consumption
-“The decoction of Garlic clears the Throat and is also useful in Chronic Cough”. (Avicenna)
-“Decoction and vapour clarifies the voice, cures Cough, purifies the Chest and clears Chills”. (Dorsetn, 1540)

5. Clears Cold and Damp, Promotes Urine:

-promotes Urine, for Stones
-Edema
-Rheumatism, Arthritis, Lumbago, Sciatica
-“Garlic, dispels the internal [cold] swelling of the body”. (Dorsetn, 1540)

6. Benefits the Heart and Circulation:

-Heart disease; Coldness from Heart weakness
-Hypertension, Arteriosclerosis (WHO Monograph; Commission E)

7. Warms the Kidneys, Increases Yang

-Impotence; Aphrodisiac
-Tonic in Ayurveda: increases Intellect; benefits Memory; Rejuvenates; promotes Longevity
-“Garlic is good for him who has little sperm due to lots of sex—it multiplies Sperm”. (Rhazes)

8. Kills Worms

-Roundworm, Pinworm, Tapeworm, Threadworm, Hookworm
-a peeled clove of Garlic has been inserted as a suppository
-also taken orally for Lice
-proven effect against various Worms and Parasitic infections (see research below)
-“With garlic powder, if the head is anointed, it kills lice and nits”. (Dorsetn, 1540)

9. Externally:

-Cramps
-Piles
-Herpes, Eczema, Dandruff, Acne, Boils
-“It softens and opens abscesses, draws out the pus.” (Dorsetn, 1540)
-“Ashes heal bad ulcers that are open, if they are sprinkled”. (Dorsetn, 1540)
-“Ash of garlic, if applied with honey, is useful in Pityriasis and ecchymosis”. (Avicenna)
-For Corns, roast a Garlic clove and apply as hot as comfortable.
-Retention of Urine, apply a poultice over the bladder
-Pneumonia in infants, apply a poultice over the chest and upper back
-Hoarseness, crush garlic and apply to the soles
-childhood Convulsions, crush and apply to the soles
-Genital Itching, make a strong decoction and use as a wash
-Bites and Stings, cut a thin slice of garlic and apply
-Rhinitis, Sinusitis, nose drops prepared from 10% Garlic solution are used (Barefoot Doctors Manual)
-Nasal Polyps, sniff the juice or paint it on
-Earache, drop the juice in, or cut a clove of Garlic to form a plug and place in the ear
-Rheumatism, the juice is applied or a cut clove of Garlic is rubbed vigorously to relieve pain
-Facial Paralysis, apply Garlic topically
-strong infusion or tincture applied to Baldness
-“Hair loss, which they call alopecia, is cured by Garlic ashes mixed with honey and anointed”. (Dorsetn, 1540)

Dose:

1. One clove of Garlic can be peeled and swallowed, 2–3 times daily; 2 cloves every 2 hours at the beginning of acute infection of Cold or Flu, or gastroenteritis until 4 or 5 doses have been given often cures. Not suitable in people with excess Heat or Yin deficiency.
2. “If it is boiled in water till its intensity is dissolved, the remaining part would be less in hotness and, therefore, it would not desiccate but instead, may promote the formation of semen.
Garlic Powder: 200–500mg
Garlic in Decoction: 3–5 cloves fresh, or 2–5 grams dry.
Tincture of Garlic (1 in 10): 5–20mls
Used in washes and fomentations topically. A fresh clove of Garlic can be crushed for topical application.

Corrective:

1. Garlic can be fried in Oil to correct it
2. The overheating effect on the Brain are corrected by taking with Vinegar and Oil. (Tacuinum Sanitatus)
3. Prepare with Coriander seed water or Salt Water

Substitute:

1. White Onion (Unani)
2. Asafetida is used as a substitute for Garlic by some Hindus as Garlic is believed to be too heating to the mind.

Preparation:

1. Its hot and blood-heating quality were removed by boiling until it loses its sharpness. This is what should be given to people with heat diseases if it is wished for them to use Garlic at all. It may also be dried.
2. It may also be roasted to yellow or brown to lessen its heat and pungency.
3. In India when used for Consumption and Wasting, Garlic is decocted in Milk. In China, it is decocted and given in Rice gruel for the same purpose. Both methods relieve its heat and dryness.
It was somtimes beaten and Stir-fried with Honey in the West (as in the Electuary of Garlic); this corrects its heat and dryness, and removes the tendancy to ‘corrupt the Blood’. If the stir-frying is continued until the crushed Garlic is lightly scorched, and then it is stir-fried with Honey, this would be the best preparation for acute heat diseases, as well as consumption.

Main Combinations:

1. Arteriosclerosis, hypertension:
i. Garlic with Hawthorn and Mistletoe (German Patent medicine)
ii.Garlic with Hawthorn, Mistletoe, Horsetail (Meyer)
iii. Garlic with Rosemary
iv. Garlic with Turmeric, Cumin
2. Coldness of the Body:
i. Garlic with Chili and Ginger, cooked with meat or vegetables
ii. Garlic with Cinnamon, Ginger, Clove, Fennel seed, Aniseed
3. To protect from Plague and Infectious diseases:
i. swallow a clove of Garlic every morning during epidemics.
ii. Garlic with Calamus, Cinnamon, Lavender, Mint, Rue, Sage, Wormwood, Rosemary; Clove, Nutmeg (as in Four Thieves Vinegar)
iii. Garlic with Theriac
4. for Tuberculosis and Consumption, decoct Garlic in Milk (Ayurveda)
5. Cough and Cold, take Garlic with Oxymel of Squill
6. Poor digestion, colic, decoct Garlic with Black Pepper, Cumin seed, Coriander seed (Ayurveda)
7. Obesity:
i. Garlic with Fennel seed
ii. Garlic with Tartar, Cumin, Fennel seed, Cumin, Zedoary, Mastic (as in Powder Against Obesity)
8. Lumbago, fry Ginger in Ghee, add beaten Garlic; this is taken daily.
9. Worms:
i. swollow 2 cloves of Garlic twice daily for 3 or 5 days
ii. “Administration of two drachms (7 gm) of Garlic pounded with Honey water, expels Phlegm and Worms”. (Avicenna)
10. Lice:
i.. “Oral intake of Garlic with the decoction of Calamint, destroys Lice”. (Avicenna)
ii. “Garlic is also drunk with great benefit with a decoction of Oregano, as Dioscorides will do against lice and nits”. (Dorsetn, 1540)
11. Toothache, use a mouthwash of Garlic and Frankinccense. (Avicenna)
12.

Major Formulas:

Syrup of Garlic Compound
Four Thieves Vinegar
Powder Against Obesity
Bi Ma La (Tibetan Medicine)
Garlic Milk (Lasuna Kshira) (Ayurveda)
Garlic Pills (Lasunadi Vati) (Ayurveda)

Cautions:

1. Not suitable for Hot (Choleric) bodies.
2. Not used in Yin deficiency
3. Culpeper warns that it ‘breeds corrupt blood’; Langham, 1579 said ‘Garlic causes thirst, dryeth up the whole body, especially in hot seasons; causeth frenzie and doth more harm raw’. This is likewise realised in the East. In rejuvenation, it is usually only used during Winter.
4. Hippocrates warned Garlic was bad for the eyes. Avicenna said “Garlic weakens Eyesight and produces styes in the Eyes”.

Main Preparations used:

Electuary with Honey, Garlic Syrup, Elixir of Garlic, Garlic Milk

1. GARLIC SYRUP.
i. Express juice of 1 pound of garlic bulbs, adding 1 pint of water while you are expressing. Add a pint of Wine Vinegar to the pressed root, and steep for an hour, and press out as the other. Then add 3 lbs of refined sugar, and make a syrup. Skim off impurities.
Used for cold type asthma, hysteria, dropsy etc. Dose: 1 Tablespoon.
ii. Another:
Garlic, bruised   6 oz.
Vinegar, 1 pint
Refined Sugar   2 lbs.
Steep the Garlic in 10 fluid ounces of the Vinegar in a glass Vessel for 4 days, then express the liquor. Then steep the remainder with the rest of the vinegar, express again firmly. Then pour the filtered liquor on the Sugar in a bottle, and shake until dissolved.
This is excellent for bronchial conditions in children. Dose: 1 teaspoonful for a 1 year old child.
iii. Another:
fresh Garlic 200 grams, cut and crushed,
Stand for 4 days in 300 ml of 6% vinegar, press. Add another 200 ml of vinegar, strain, press. Combine the pressed liquids, filter. Dissolve in 800 g of sugar and bring to 1000 ml with vinegar. (Fischer and Hartwich 1903)
2. ELIXIR of GARLIC. (Horstius)
Bruise 20 Garlic Cloves, put into an Alembic, and cover them with S.V. by 4 inches; distil in B.M. with several cohobations, adding fresh Spirit in the last distillation, with 1 dram of Camphor tied up and put into the neck of the still.
It is a Preservative and Antidote to the Plague.
Dose: 1–1.5 oz., taken alone, or in Angelica or Balm Water. (Salmon)
3. GARLIC MILK. (Lasuna Kshira)
Garlic   1 gram (6 oz.)
Milk 250 mls (2 lbs.)
Water 1 liter (16 lbs.)
Boil them together down to a quarter, or if the larger quantities are used, boil to the consumption of the water (down to 2 lbs.). (Two versions of the quantities are given for greater or lesser amounts to be made).
This is used in Ayurveda; accounted a wonderful medicine for Tuberculosis, taken 3 times daily. It is also useful in Pnuemonia, Asthma, and related conditions. It has also been used for other conditions including Malarial and Intermittent Fevers, especially when there is shivering.
4. PRESERVED GARLIC
Garlic Cloves, cleansed 1 lb.
Cover them with water and boil a little, then cast the water away; then boil in a sufficient amount of Hyssop Water until soft; make the liquor into a Syrup by boiling with 1 lb. of refined Sugar; towards the end, add the Garlic with 24 grains of Ambergris and 4 grains of Musk tied up in a Rag, and 2 oz, of Spirit of Clary.
Good for Epidemic and Infectious diseases, Plague, Pestilence, and Spotted Fevers; for these diseases, it is prophylactic as well as curative. Good for Cough, Asthma, Stone, Gout; also colic.

Extra Info
History
Research
Comment

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-Garlic has been used since at least the Stone Age. It was such an important part of the daily diet of the workers building the Pyramids that they actually striked for not getting enough according to a papyrus dated 1600 BC.
-First cultivated in England around 1540.
-The name ‘Garlic’ is derived from Gar, a spear, and leac, a plant.
-In earlier times it was often called Poor Man’s Treacle as it was often used by the poor and country folk as Theriac as a remedy against all Venom and Toxin.
-The German Commission E Monographs recommended Garlic ‘as an adjunct to dietary measures for elevated serum lipid concentrations’. (FW)
-The smell of Garlic was believed around the world to ward off evil spirits. It was held to protect from demons, devils, vampires, and the Evil Eye.
-Ayurvedic Medicine calls Garlic ‘Rashona’, meaning ‘Lacking one Taste’ in reference to the fact that all but one taste is found in the Garlic plant: the root is Pungent, leaves are Bitter, the stem is Astringent, the Tops are Salty and the seed is Sweet. It lacks the Sour taste, however.
-From the School of Salerno (taken from the English version by Sir John Harington):

Six things, that here in oder shall ensue,
Against all poisons have a secret power,
Pear, Garlic, Radish, Walnut, Rape and Rue,
But Garlic chief; for they that it devour,
May drink, and care not who their drink do brew;
May walk in airs infected every hour.
Sith Garlic then has powers to save from death,
Bear with it though it make unsavory breath:
And scorn not Garlic, like to some that think
It only makes men wink, and drink, and stink.

-An Old Welsh saying goes:

‘Eat Leekes in Lide and Ramsins in May,
And all the Year after Physicians may play’.
(Lide means March, and Ramsins are a wild Garlic)

-Garlic has been given to Cocks to prepare them for fighting, and given to Horses to make them more vigorous. Jockeys were said to fasten a piece of Garlic to the bits of their Horses. It was said the other Horses would fall back as soon as they smelled the strong odor. Given to chickens who are not laying; various animal diseases are abated by adding a little Garlic to food or drink.
-Traditionally it was said that if a runner chewed a little of a Garlic bulb, his competitors would not get ahead of him.
-A Mohammedan legend says that when Satan stepped from the Garden of Eden after the Fall of Man, Garlic sprang from the place touched by his left foot, and Onion sprang from the touch of his right foot.

“Zacutus Lusitanus tells a Story of an old man, who having travelled long through the Snow in the Winter time, was almost at Death’s door, from the natural Heat of the Stomach being well nigh extinguished; for restoring and enlivening of whom, then the hottest Remedies had been tried in vain; at length Zacutus taught by Avicennna, gave him dried Garlic tempered with Honey. The poor Man having used this Remedy for four Days successively he began to find himself better, and after he had continued the use of it for a Month, was restored to perfect Health”. (Tournefort, 1730)

The Egyptians formerly made great account of it, and pretended that it preserved them from several Diseases. They even looked upon Garlic. as a powerful Antidote, which they, employed as we do Theriac, and several other such like Remedies”. (Tournefort, 1730)

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