Garlic Is Mother Nature's Pungent Cure-All

I don't know about you, but one of my very favorite aromas is garlic wafting through a kitchen, especially when it's in a great tomato sauce or stir fried with some vegetables. Whether it's in a pan with olive oil or roasting in oven, smell of garlic sets my appetite on overdrive!

While not everyone shares my predilection for this odoriferous herb, there can be no denying that its appeal extends far beyond its smell or taste.

Time and again, garlic has come through as one of most versatile healing herbs known to humans.

The value of garlic (Allium sativum) has been recognized since ancient Egypt, when slaves went on strike to increase their garlic rations. In 1950s, great Albert Schweitzer, M.D., used garlic in his African clinic to treat dysentery, typhus and cholera.

During Second World War, garlic was used as a disinfectant for wounds and as protection against gangrene in injured soldiers.

Now, research is showing that it protects against two of most dreaded diseases of our time: heart disease and cancer.

Some have even argued that since our ancestors ate a diet rich in a variety of plants and herbs now missing in modern diets, we should consider phytonutrient-rich plants such as garlic to be essential nutrients!

I think this is a great idea, and you can easily incorporate into your own personal diet plan just by taking aged garlic supplements.

Garlic Basics

Garlic is a member of lily family. Its genus (Allium) also includes onions. When a clove of garlic is crushed or chewed, an odorless sulfur-containing compound, alliin, is transformed to allicin, which gives garlic its characteristic odor. Allicin is element of garlic that has been most intensively studied and which appears to have most medicinal value. Allicin naturally breaks down to other compounds, including daily sulfide and ajoene, which are thought to have unique healing effects on body.

Garlic Keeps Your Blood Vessels Clear

While early studies on heart-protective effects of garlic showed that garlic supplementation tended to decrease "bad" LDL cholesterol and raise "good" HDL, more recent research has conflicted with those results.

Whether garlic affects blood cholesterol levels or not, it still dramatically reduces buildup of plaque (the fatty deposits that clog blood vessels) in arteries.

In one study from journal Atherosclerosis, 152 subjects had amount of plaque in two major arteries measured, and then took garlic powder for 48 months. The results showed that growth of plaques was slowed by five to 18 percent, and that in some subjects plaques actually became smaller.

Several studies on non-human subjects show same trend. It appears that garlic protects heart by way of its potent antioxidant effects. Oxidized LDL, not just LDL, is what causes plaques to grow. In study after study garlic has shown itself to be a superior preventative against LDL oxidation. Garlic also protects against clogged blood vessels by decreasing tendency of blood to clump or clot.

Garlic Protects Against Infections Of All Kinds

Whether you want to stave off bacterial, viral, fungal, or parasitic infections, garlic is good protection. Garlic has been shown in test-tube studies and animal studies to be deadly to Helicobacter pylori, bacteria that causes ulcers, and to dreaded food-borne bacteria Salmonella, E. coli, Staphylococcus and Listeria.

Bacteria do not develop resistance to garlic—a good reason to favor garlic over antibiotics! Phytochemicals in garlic are also effective at stopping cold, flu and herpes viruses in their tracks. The growth of Candida albicans, fungal yeast that causes vaginal yeast infections and intestinal candidiasis, is slowed by garlic. Garlic kills parasites such as Giardia and Entamoeba, both common causes of chronic diarrhea.

Cancer Prevention With Garlic

I have read a number of books, articles, and novels, and have watched movies and television series that touched on origins of Tai Chi Chuan (Tai Chi Boxing), and question, “Who Created Tai Chi Chuan?” made me concern very much!

Although knowing origins or source of Tai Chi Chuan is not going to have much effects on your learning and practicing of art, it is my responsibility to share with masses of what I have found out. And understanding origins of something that we loved so much about will make us appreciate understand it better, if not improving our skills.

The legend was too well-known. And most people will tell and re-tell stories of a priest named Zhang Sanfeng of Wudang Sect who found this special martial arts called Tai Chi Chuan. I was fascinated by these legends, and found myself believing them too… until I researched more deeply into its historical backgrounds. Some legends said that he got inspiration to create Tai Chi Chuan from observing fight between a snake and a crane, and some said in he learned it from an immortal in a dream.

Dream???

Yes, this theory is found in a recorded scripture.

Based on that written scripture, it was claimed that Zhang Sanfeng were summoned by Emperor at that time, around end of Song Dynasty. He was on his way to palace when he was surrounded by a group of over 100 bandits. Unable to breakthrough, he put a night up in hiding.

That night, he dreamt of meeting King Yuan, previous ruler of China in who appeared as an immortal in his dream. King Yuan taught him a special type of martial art in that dream.

Next day, with this new skill, Zhang Sanfeng defeated 100 over bandits, single-handedly. From then onwards, Zhang Sanfeng began to teach this mysteriously acquired skill to his disciples and this art is known as Tai Chi Chuan.

Let's put aside point about him defeating 100 over bandits single-handedly, which is very difficult to be accepted as a true point. Even existence of Zhang Sanfeng is very much speculated! Some claimed that he lived in beginning of Yuan Dynasty; some claimed that he lived during Jin Invasion of Southern Song Dynasty; some claimed that he lived in Song Dynasty; and some even said in Ming Dynasty. This is quite debatable.

On top of that, why King Yuan in his dream???

This is mainly because relationship between philosophies (some said religion) and martial arts are closely related. Since Daoism is very much rooted in Chinese culture and it stresses on maintenance life, with tendency towards achieving immortality, immortal King Yuan, came into picture in this legend.

Many Chinese scholars and writers have disagreed with this record!

Even there’s common agreement that Zhang Sanfeng is not one created Tai Chi Chuan, there are many disagreement regarding origin of Tai Chi Chuan. There are many schools of thought. Some claimed that it began in Liang State of Southern Dynasty era - by Han Gongyue and Cheng Lingxi. There are claims that it was created by Xu Xuanpin or Li Daozi in Tang Dynasty.