Garlic, the “voodoo bulb” – love it or hate it (part 4)

As promised last week, all good things are 4. That´s why here and now, you can find the last part of our garlic piece. Let´s have a look at some more of its beneficial effects and finally find out, what the vampires are all about with their aversion to garlic.

Beginning with the history of the famous medicinal plant a long time ago, over the precious ingredients, up to its valued properties in humans and animals, we´d like to end our garlic journey with further beneficial characteristics and the importance of its use for Delacon. Let us have a closer look on the immunostimulant activity and the antihypertensive effect of garlic.

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Antihypertensive activity

Though still further studies are required on the detailed mode of action of antihypertensive effect of garlic, respectively allicin, some studies suggest a possible positive effect on hypertension in organism.

Treatments with S-1-propenylcysteine (S1PC, a key constituent of aged garlic extract) showed decreasing effects on the systolic blood pressure in hypertensive rats.

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Immunostimulant activity

Next to these benefits, that have already been proclaimed for many years to some extent, Allium sativum, respectively its derivates, is also taking center stage regarding immunostimulant activities, as they show the ability for balancing the homeostasis of the immune system. However, to date, the responsible plant components being able to support the immune stimulation are not yet known in detail.

A study suggested the plant mechanisms being responsible for an improved gut ecosystem, enhancing the function of the immune system in chickens. Others consider the anti-oxidant characteristics of plants as a weapon against environmental stressors and support of the immune function in its role to combat certain diseases.

It seems as if garlics’ anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory characteristics base on two main mechanisms: the modulation of cytokine profiles and direct stimulation of immune cells.

And finally, …

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…quite versatile in use, our voodoo bulb. Well, at this point we still owe you the solution of the myth that garlic helps against vampires:

The allegedly great aversion of vampires to garlic stems from a theory that vampires have an extremely sensitive nose. And since garlic is rather odor-intensive, vampires avoid it like the plague. Another thesis says vampires have porphyria, an illness, which is characterized by insufficient hemoglobin (responsible for the red color of the blood) production and thus, making the skin pale and sensitive to light. The enzyme P450 is responsible for the degradation of hemoglobin. Garlic contains large quantities of this enzyme, which is the reason for its blood diluting characteristics. That´s why garlic seems harmful for an already blood-damaged vampire, hence showing the deterrent effect on the undead. Granted, perhaps not that essential to know, but the much more important is our message to you as follows:

Of course, we at Delacon don´t believe in fairy tales and vampires, but we do strongly believe in the power of mother nature and its plant universe. A universe, in which garlic already represents a bright star regarding research and development of phytogenic feed additives. And we even go one step further, we prove the beneficial effects of natural derived substances in animal nutrition and thereby replace believe by knowledge – this is what distinguishes us as market leader in phytogenics.

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Thank you for joining us in looking up close at another bright star in the phytogenic universe.

Though: There is much more to discover – it remains exciting…

 Elisabeth Rohrer

Elisabeth Rohrer

After her study in agriculture sciences at the university of natural resources and life sciences in Vienna, Elisabeth joined the Delacon team in December 2013 as Technical Communications Manager - a position, she always exerted with pleasure. Since 2021, her task areas have been extended and thus, she is also supporting colleagues in writing offside the technical focus as Content Manager. Elisabeth describes herself as a great animal and nature lover and prefers to spend her free time high up in the mountains with her little family, away from the hustle and bustle.

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