I’ll be sincere, I consider that recent meals are sometimes higher and more healthy than their processed, powdered types – and that features garlic. More energizing herbs and spices usually retain extra antioxidants and nutritional vitamins in comparison with dried variations.
So, what’s the take care of garlic powder? I exploit it sometimes, however I actually want recent garlic, with its highly effective scent and scrumptious style when it’s added to meals.
Nothing beats recent garlic in my thoughts. BUT, garlic powder isn’t a foul various should you don’t have recent cloves available. Nevertheless, does it supply the identical advantages as recent garlic? I’ve determined to research.
Fast Reply
Is garlic powder good for you? Sure, garlic powder retains lots of the similar well being advantages as recent garlic. Whereas it might lose some vitamins throughout processing, it nonetheless presents coronary heart well being assist, helps struggle dangerous micro organism, reduces irritation, and boosts immune well being. Garlic powder is a handy, shelf-stable various to recent garlic that may be simply added to your weight loss plan to enhance digestion and total well being.
How Is Garlic Powder Truly Made?
So, how does garlic go from recent cloves to that positive powder sitting in your spice rack? The method is fairly easy.
First, recent garlic cloves are peeled and sliced. Then, these slices are dehydrated at low temperatures to protect as a lot of the garlic’s flavour as attainable.
As soon as the garlic is totally dried, it’s floor right into a positive powder you can simply sprinkle over your favorite dishes.
What Occurs Throughout the Drying Course of?
The drying course of entails eradicating the moisture from the garlic cloves, which helps lengthen their shelf life. Whereas this course of is nice for comfort, it does result in some nutrient loss.
One of many first issues to go is Vitamin C, which is extremely delicate to warmth and lightweight. So, should you’re utilizing garlic powder hoping to get a dose of Vitamin C, you’re out of luck.
Nevertheless, it’s not all unhealthy information. Though drying reduces allicin, the compound accountable for a lot of garlic’s well being advantages, there’s a neat trick: allicin can nonetheless type if you add water to garlic powder.
Garlic powder comprises alliin, a compound that turns into allicin when uncovered to water, because of an enzyme referred to as alliinase. So, whereas garlic powder may not pack the identical rapid punch as recent garlic, you’ll be able to nonetheless get a number of the advantages should you’re utilizing it in recipes that contain water or moisture.
On high of that, garlic powder retains another necessary vitamins like Vitamin B6, calcium, and manganese, in addition to some sulfur compounds, that are accountable for garlic’s attribute scent and a few of its well being advantages.
So, though recent garlic continues to be the gold customary, garlic powder is much from nutritionally void—it simply brings its advantages in a special type.
What Are the Advantages of Garlic Powder?
Garlic powder presents a number of well being advantages past simply including flavour to your meals. Let’s discover a very powerful ones.
Garlic Powder Helps Coronary heart Well being
One of the crucial well-known advantages of garlic, together with garlic powder, is its optimistic impact on coronary heart well being. Studies have proven that garlic powder may also help cut back ldl cholesterol ranges, significantly LDL ldl cholesterol, which is the “unhealthy” type that may result in plaque buildup in your arteries. Decreasing LDL ldl cholesterol can cut back the danger of coronary heart illness.
Garlic powder might also assist decrease blood stress. A meta-analysis of medical trials discovered that garlic powder considerably decreased each systolic (the highest quantity) and diastolic (the underside quantity) blood stress.
In the event you’re searching for a pure approach to assist your cardiovascular system, including garlic powder to your weight loss plan may very well be a straightforward step in the best course.
Garlic Powder Fights Dangerous Micro organism
Garlic powder has sturdy antibacterial properties because of a compound referred to as allicin, which types when the powder is blended with water.
Allicin may also help cease the expansion of dangerous micro organism like Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori), a kind of micro organism that causes abdomen ulcers and different digestive points. This makes garlic powder useful for supporting intestine well being
However that’s not all. Garlic powder additionally fights micro organism that may trigger meals poisoning, like Salmonella and E. coli. These micro organism are frequent in contaminated meals, and garlic powder may also help shield in opposition to them.
Along with allicin, garlic powder comprises other sulfur compounds that work collectively to cease micro organism from functioning correctly. So, including garlic powder to your meals isn’t nearly flavour—it might probably additionally assist cut back the danger of foodborne sicknesses.
Garlic Powder Reduces Irritation
Garlic, together with its powdered type, has anti-inflammatory effects, which may also help cut back swelling and ache within the physique. Research present that garlic can decrease markers of irritation, like C-reactive protein (CRP) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), that are linked to irritation. This makes garlic powder a helpful possibility for managing situations like arthritis.
One marker that garlic doesn’t appear to have an effect on as a lot is interleukin-6 (IL-6). IL-6 is a protein that performs a key position within the immune system, selling irritation when the physique is preventing off infections or coping with damage. Whereas garlic powder doesn’t considerably cut back IL-6, it nonetheless helps decrease different necessary inflammatory markers.
Garlic Powder Helps Your Immune System
Garlic powder may also help increase your immune system and will even have antiviral results. Whenever you combine garlic powder with water, it creates allicin, a compound that helps your physique struggle off infections. Studies present that allicin can cease viruses just like the flu, herpes, and even SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19) from spreading within the physique.
Allicin works by blocking viruses from entering cells and stopping them from multiplying. This makes garlic powder a helpful approach to assist your immune well being. Some analysis additionally means that garlic may also help you recuperate sooner from colds and different viral infections.
Though we’d like extra research to completely perceive how effectively garlic powder works, the allicin it types means it might probably supply a number of the similar immune-boosting and antiviral advantages as recent garlic.
Garlic Powder Accommodates Antioxidants
Garlic, together with its powdered type, contains antioxidants, which assist shield your cells from injury brought on by free radicals. Free radicals are unstable molecules that may injury cells and contribute to getting older and illnesses like coronary heart illness and most cancers. The antioxidants in garlic powder might assist decelerate the getting older course of and cut back the danger of those persistent situations.
Whereas garlic powder might have barely fewer antioxidants than recent garlic, it nonetheless retains sufficient of those useful compounds, comparable to allicin and different organosulfur compounds, to supply protecting results. These compounds assist neutralize free radicals and might assist total well being.
Garlic Powder Helps Digestive Well being
Garlic is thought for its potential to assist digestive well being by serving to to stability the intestine microbiome—the gathering of micro organism in your digestive system. Research present that garlic, together with its powdered type, comprises compounds like allicin that may promote the expansion of useful micro organism within the intestine whereas inhibiting dangerous micro organism, comparable to Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori), which may trigger abdomen ulcers.
By serving to to take care of a wholesome stability of intestine micro organism, garlic powder might assist forestall digestive points and assist total intestine well being.
Is Garlic Powder as Good for You as Contemporary Garlic?
Contemporary garlic has increased ranges of allicin and Vitamin C, giving it a slight edge in efficiency. Nevertheless, garlic powder nonetheless offers lots of the similar well being advantages in a extra handy type.
Whereas it might not match recent garlic’s rapid results, garlic powder retains sufficient of its energetic compounds to make it a beneficial, shelf-stable various for supporting coronary heart well being, digestion, and immunity.
What Concerning the Aspect Results?
Whereas garlic powder presents many well being advantages, it’s necessary to concentrate on potential unintended effects. Some folks might expertise abdomen points like heartburn, gasoline, or bloating when consuming garlic, together with garlic powder. These digestive points are extra seemingly should you devour giant quantities of garlic powder or if in case you have a delicate abdomen.
Moreover, garlic (each recent and powdered) might skinny the blood, so if you’re taking blood-thinning remedy, it is best to seek the advice of your physician earlier than growing your garlic consumption. Some folks might also expertise allergic reactions to garlic, although that is uncommon.
Most often, garlic powder is protected when utilized in average quantities in cooking, however should you discover any discomfort, it’s finest to regulate your consumption.
The Backside Line
Garlic powder might not have all of the vitamins of recent garlic, however it nonetheless presents lots of the similar advantages. It’s a handy method so as to add heart-healthy, immune-boosting, and digestive-supporting compounds to your meals. Whether or not you’re utilizing it for flavour or well being, garlic powder is a good choice to maintain in your kitchen when recent garlic isn’t out there.
Extra Research:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2584604/
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1286457999800033
