Garlic: friend or foe?

Yes, garlic one of those kind of friends. Good on the right occasion; generally OK in small doses, but can easily become over-powering and leave you with a bit of a headache.

Like anything, too much garlic will have consequences, but how much is too much? And when and where is garlic bad for you?

So far as I can tell, the two primary sources for garlic’s neurotoxicity are Dr Bob Beck and the yogic traditions of India. Dr Beck developed the Beck Protocol, which involves using electrical microcurrents and Pulsed Electro-Magnetic Field technologies to help clear the blood of pathogens and parasites, so the body can heal itself. The Beck Protocol is highly-regarded by many natural health practitioners and has a strong track record, especially regarding cancer. Dr Beck also manufactured EEG equipment and in his research found that garlic desynchronized brainwaves. He said:

“If you have any patients who have low-grade headaches or attention deficit disorder [ADD], they can’t quite focus on the computer in the afternoon, just do an experiment – you owe it to yourselves. Take these people off garlic and see how much better they get, very very shortly

And then let them eat a little garlic after about three weeks. They’ll say “My God, I had no idea that this was the cause of our problems.”

http://www.healingcancernaturally.com/garlic-brain-toxin.html

Dr Beck’s research is taken to confirm the experience of Indian mystics, that garlic and onions (alliums) interfere with meditation and that advanced meditators should abstain from both of them. I would guess that a genuine yogi has no need for garlic or onions and might well find their pungency disturbing. However, that does not mean that abstaining from garlic or onions can help an ordinary person achieve a higher state of consciousness. So much depends on the health and circumstances of each individual. Coming off sugar, alcohol or foods soaked in glyphosate, will also reduce low-grade headaches. As will drinking a sufficient amount of good water for anyone dehydrated, which includes many headache sufferers.

That said, ANYTHING that causes brainwave desynchronization should be treated with caution. If you buy garlic, go for organic and as locally sourced as possible.

We are into our ninth year of growing all our own garlic and eat it once or twice a week, less in the summer. We used to eat more of it when we used to buy it. It is a spicy medicine, anti-parasitical, anti-fungal, with microbial balancing and a range of protective actions. Whether it is good or bad for you depends on your general state of health, how much of it you eat and what you eat it with – garlic, cheese and red wine are a likely headache combination.

I highly value its anti-parasitical and microbial balancing properties. Garlic contains alliin which is enzymatically transformed into allicin, nature’s most potent antimicrobial agent. Its high sulphur content makes it useful in detoxification, especially from heavy metals as it is able to oxidize mercury, cadmium and lead and make these metals water-soluble so that they can be excreted. It also protects white and red blood cells from oxidative damage caused by heavy metals. A high heavy metal load, will almost always lead to symptoms that are labeled as secondary infections, but are actually part of the body’s detoxification processes.

Garlic contains the most important mineral which protects from mercury toxicity, bio active selenium. Most selenium products are poorly absorbable and do not reach the cells that are in need for it. Garlic selenium is the most beneficial natural bioavailable source and the natural plant and if you are able to grow it yourself, will be far superior, more balanced and more effective than any factory processed supplement.

Some studies show that garlic is also protective against heart disease and cancer.

I am wary of studies that show how isolated substances work in petri dishes in laboratories, as I think these studies bear very little resemblance to how the whole plant works in a living organism. I pay much more attention to my own instincts, what my taste buds call for and how something makes me feel. I do notice that too much garlic will interfere with my sleep and dreaming, as I will tend to over-heat and recognize in my sleep that more toxins have been released into my bloodstream than my body can easily handle. Occasionally, we have garlic soup as a detox and I think it’s beneficial in making the microbiome unappealing to parasites.

I consider garlic to be a slightly dangerous friend, exciting to be around, but I wouldn’t want to live with them.