A Cochrane review, carried out earlier this year, has demonstrated that garlic is effective in preventing and treating the symptoms of a common cold such as runny nose, sneezing, headache and sore throat.
Only one study fitted the reviewers’ criteria for inclusion. In this study, 146 patients were randomly assigned to take garlic supplements or placebo for 12 weeks. The results were dramatic; only 24 of the people taking garlic supplements reported coming down with a cold, compared with 65 of those taking the placebo. In addition, the number of days that people were sick was reduced from 5 in the placebo group to 2 in the treatment group.
Garlic contains hundreds of compounds that support health via detoxification, lowering cholesterol and protecting against cancer. This research demonstrates, for the first time, that garlic can also protect us from the common cold.
