Botanical Library
Garlic
Traditional use tradition
🍄Image: GarlicAdd an image URL to this ingredient in Admin to replace this placeholder.
At a glance
Where it's from
Originated in Central Asia; grown worldwide.
Look & taste
A papery white bulb of individual cloves. Pungent, savoury
Signature compounds
Allicin and other organosulfur compounds.
Traditionally used for
A universal folk remedy for the heart, circulation and winter colds.
In Canada, we can say...
Used in Herbal Medicine to help maintain cardiovascular health and reduce elevated blood lipids in adults, and traditionally to relieve symptoms of upper respiratory tract infections and congestion.
Did you know?
Allicin, garlic's key compound, only forms when the clove is crushed or chopped.
History & natural history
Used for food and medicine for 5,000+ years, from the pyramid builders onward.
What we're actually allowed to say
🇨🇦 Health Canada
✓ Permitted: Used in Herbal Medicine to help maintain cardiovascular health and reduce elevated blood lipids in adults, and traditionally to relieve symptoms of upper respiratory tract infections and congestion.
How to use it
As food, aged-garlic capsules, or a supplement.
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Request Garlic →Side effects & safety
Check with a practitioner if pregnant, diabetic, or taking blood thinners. Stop use if allergy occurs.
A note on how to read this page. Traditional (TCM / Ayurveda) and holistic notes are cultural and historical context, offered for education — not medical advice or health claims. Health Canada's permitted claims reflect what regulators have assessed. Emerging research is early, and not a promise of results. Nothing here is intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. Always talk to your (or your pet's) health professional before starting a supplement.