Garlic is a very common food in life. Garlic has a unique fragrance, the taste is very stimulating, and garlic is generally considered to be a food with sterilization function, which is loved by many friends.
But recently, there has been a saying on the Internet that eating garlic can cause damage to a person's liver. After hearing this news, many friends avoid garlic. So does eating garlic really hurt the liver? Today we will talk about this problem.
Does garlic really hurt the liver?
The liver is an important organ in our body, which plays an important role in the metabolism and circulation of various substances in the body, and is an important guarantee for the normal operation of various physiological functions of the human body. Therefore, after hearing that eating garlic will hurt the liver, many friends dare not eat garlic anymore.
In fact, the saying that garlic will hurt the liver lacks scientific basis, and everyone does not need to eat garlic because they are afraid of hurting the liver. So where did this statement come from?
This statement comes from the theory of Chinese medicine. There is a saying in the theory of Chinese medicine that garlic is beneficial and only harms one eye. This sentence is popularly said that eating garlic has many benefits, but there is a harm, that is, it is harmful to the eyes.
This statement is not unreasonable, after garlic is chopped, the allicin in garlic will be decomposed by allinase to form allicin, which is what we often call garlic flavor. Allicin is a substance with a pungent odor and is highly volatile, and people's noses will be stimulated when they smell this smell, as will their eyes.
Therefore, when many people cut or mash garlic, their eyes will be stimulated to shed tears.
Therefore, Chinese medicine theory believes that garlic is harmful to people's eyes. So what is the connection between garlic's damage to the eyes and the liver?
Chinese medicine believes that the eye is outside the liver. The meaning of this sentence is that the state of the eye is the external manifestation of the state of the liver. If there is a problem with the state of the liver, then there will be problems with the eyes as well.
In addition, there is a saying in the theory of Chinese medicine, "The liver and the eye can distinguish the five colors". The meaning of this sentence is that the liver is healthier and the health of the eyes is better. Therefore, many people blindly infer that if the state of the eye is not good according to the logical relationship, the liver is also in an unhealthy state.
Therefore, garlic will cause damage to people's eyes, worsen the health of the eyes, and naturally cause liver damage. This is the origin of the phrase "eating garlic hurts the liver".
But with the development of science and technology, we in modern medicine can not link the health of garlic and liver. In modern medicine, there is no clear correlation between eating garlic and liver damage.
Some people believe that garlic has a bactericidal and disinfection effect, so to a certain extent, eating garlic can prevent the occurrence of liver disease. Because many kinds of liver disease are caused by hepatitis viruses. Therefore, eating garlic will not only cause no harm to the liver, but also protect the liver.
This statement is also imprecise. Here we can correct a fallacy that has been taken as common sense by everyone, that is, eating garlic can be sterilized and disinfected. Although modern medicine has confirmed that the allicin in garlic has a certain bactericidal and disinfection effect, there are unrealistic requirements for dosage.
Only when the content of allicin in human blood exceeds 560.00 μg/mL, allicin can play a role in sterilization and disinfection. This concentration is very exaggerated, even if the preparation of allicin is directly injected, it may not be possible to make the concentration of allicin in the blood of a normal person reach this level, let alone rely on eating garlic.
Some scientists have done a simple calculation, if all the garlic in a person can be completely absorbed and utilized, then in order to make the concentration of allicin in the blood reach the standard that can be sterilized and disinfected, the person needs to eat a kilogram of garlic every day.
Garlic has a certain stimulating effect on people's stomach and intestines. Let's not say that it is difficult for a person to eat two pounds of garlic a day, even if you eat so much garlic, the damage caused by garlic to the stomach and intestines will far exceed the positive impact of garlic disinfection and sterilization on health. Therefore, under normal circumstances, eating garlic cannot produce a sterilization and disinfection effect.
In summary, eating garlic will not hurt the liver, nor will it play a protective role for the liver. Eating garlic in normal amounts will not cause any effect on the liver of the eater. Therefore, everyone does not have to have so many concerns when eating garlic, do not stimulate their own stomach.
How does garlic help your health?
Although garlic is not helpful for liver health, and garlic can not actually play a role in sterilization and disinfection, but as a nutrient-rich food, garlic is still helpful for human health.
The sulfur-containing compounds in garlic produce an enzyme after entering the intestines of the eater. This enzyme effectively prevents lipid peroxidation from occurring, which in turn protects cells in the intestines from becoming cancerous due to damage.
Although in most cases, supplementing with a certain food will not have a significant effect on cancer prevention. But many research institutions, including the National Cancer Institute, believe that garlic is a food with potential cancer-preventing properties.
Garlic helps regulate blood sugar. Garlic is rich in selenium-containing compounds. These substances are of great help in regulating the body's insulin secretion levels. For those who already have diabetes, eating garlic can slow down the condition of diabetes; for those who have not yet developed diabetes, eating garlic can prevent the occurrence of diabetes to a certain extent.
Garlic also has a certain help for the health of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. Statistics show that in areas where garlic is consumed more than 20 grams per day, the probability of people suffering from cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases will decrease significantly.
This is because garlic can prevent abnormal platelet aggregation to form blood clots, and thrombosis is the culprit that causes many cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases; in addition, there are studies that show that allicin and allicin + allinase in garlic can reduce the blood lipids of eaters to a certain extent.
High blood lipids are also common causes of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, so eating a certain amount of garlic is helpful for cardiovascular and cerebrovascular health.
There are many more benefits of garlic, but when eating garlic, we also need to pay attention to some problems. Garlic has a significant stimulating effect on the stomach and intestines, so garlic can not be consumed on an empty stomach, and it is not possible to eat too much garlic at one time, both of which may cause the eater's stomach and intestines to be overstimulated.
Further reading: How to protect liver health
There are many benefits of garlic for the body, but it doesn't help much for liver health. In order to maintain the health of the liver, we can take the following measures in life.
To control the diet. At present, fatty liver disease has become one of the most common liver diseases. The reason why people get fatty liver is precisely because of poor eating habits. The liver is the synthesis of endogenous lipids in our body, excessive fat intake, sugar intake may lead to fat accumulation near the liver, the formation of fatty liver.
Therefore, in daily life, we must control our diet and develop good eating habits. It is necessary to strictly control the intake of high-fat, high-calorie, and high-sugar foods. It is also necessary to control the total amount of food eaten to prevent the occurrence of fatty liver.
Quit drinking. There is also a very close link between alcohol consumption and the occurrence of fatty liver. Almost all people with fatty liver disease have a history of alcohol consumption. And drinking alcohol will not only lead to an increase in the probability of fatty liver, but also may increase the burden on the liver, leading to the emergence of another liver disease - cirrhosis.
Cirrhosis is a very dangerous disease, and if it can no longer be controlled early, it is likely to develop liver cancer. Therefore, in order to protect the health of the liver, everyone must abstain from alcohol as much as possible.
Regular medical examinations should be carried out. Many liver diseases do not have more obvious symptoms in the early stages. When symptoms are visible to the naked eye, patients often miss the best time to treat liver disease.
Therefore, it is best to go to the hospital regularly for medical examinations. Major tests include transaminases and liver function tests. The results of these biochemical tests can accurately reflect the liver health status of the subject, providing a reliable basis for the doctor's diagnosis or prevention of the disease.
Pay attention to the intake of vitamins. Many times everyone will overlook this problem, and adequate intake of vitamins is necessary for the liver to maintain health. Vitamin E, vitamin C, and vitamin B12 are all vitamins that the liver must do to maintain its normal functioning.
In life, people can supplement vitamin E by eating dried fruits, such as: walnuts, melon seeds, etc.; vitamin C supplementation can be achieved by eating vegetables and fruits such as green peppers, oranges, and citrus; and eating meat can effectively supplement vitamin B12.
The health of the liver is important for the health of the body. Therefore, everyone must pay attention to these measures mentioned above in daily life, and actively communicate with doctors to use a variety of means to maintain their liver health.
Epilogue:
The claim that eating garlic can cause liver damage is unscientific from the perspective of modern medicine. So you don't have to worry about the liver being damaged by eating garlic. However, it should be noted that garlic itself has a strong irritation, and you must pay more attention to your gastrointestinal condition when eating garlic.
In addition, the health of the liver is of great significance to the health of the human body. In life, we must eat more foods that help the health of the liver, and also go to the hospital regularly for physical examinations, and actively communicate with professional doctors to scientifically protect their livers under the guidance of doctors.
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