I loved boiled garlic and eat dozens daily...is this healthy?

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proverbs

Assistant Cook
Joined
May 28, 2007
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6
Hello everyone.

Well, I love garlic. Unfortunately, I can't eat them raw because I stink and everyone I come in contact with wants to run away from me if I do. But I do cook a ton of my dishes with garlic. Most of the time, I will boil them so they are easily mash-able so I can put them in my dishes. However, since I love them so much, I can easily eat 10+ garlic cloves with one meal. For example, today I cooked a chicken breast with a soy sauce based soup/sauce. I boiled about 15 garlic cloves in the sauce for about an hour. I then mashed them all up and ate it with my chicken.

Is it ok to consume this much garlic? I do love the flavor, but a big part of why I try and add garlic in my cooking is also for the health benefits. Am I still receiving nutrients from the boiled garlic, or are all the health benefits gone after they are boiled? Is there a better way to cook them?

TIA for any advice and suggestions!
 
Hi Proverbs,
Welcome to DC. 10-15 cloves a day, every day does seem rather a lot but if you haven't got any health issues such as tummy upsets or overheated blood system with it then I suppose it is OK. Garlic does infuse the skin so your body could still smell of garlic even if your breath doesn't smell ( ask a mate, a good mate, perhaps to have a sniff?? ). Maybe run your query past your health server or local pharmacist for some dosage info just to be sure otherwise, on you go!.
 
This reminds me of a drummer I used to work with who ate lots and lots of garlic. Normally, he was fine to be around. But when he would play drums and begin to sweat, the smell of garlic was almost overpowering if you were within the vicinity. It was coming out of his pores. :yuk:

Strangely enough, he couldn't smell it himself.
 
I've never boiled it before, but I do love it roasted and mashed on toasted French bread. :yum: I eat a fair amount but nowhere near 10-15 cloves a day. :)

Welcome to DC!
 
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It is indeed possible to eat too much garlic and cause problems for your health. People often think that if some of something is good for them, then more must be better, but this isn't necessarily true. Too much of some healthy substances can be poisonous.

Towards the bottom of this page there are sections for Precautions and Interactions. Take a look: http://umm.edu/health/medical/altmed/herb/garlic
 
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You can't overheat your blood system unless you are dehydrated or in a high temperature environment, or of course if you are sick or have an underlying medical condition. Otherwise your body's thermostat controls your body temperature. Incidentally having an increased temperature when sick is part of your body's defenses against disease.

Eat too much garlic? Hah! Only socially I imagine. My motto is, when I'm dating somebody and out to dinner, I make sure she orders something with garlic before I order my own dinner.

Your best sources of an authoritative answer are to ask your physician, or possibly a pharmacist although the latter are often evasive in their answers not related to specific medications.

My quick answer: AFAIK no way will garlic hurt your health, might even help it.
 
GotGarlic said:
It is indeed possible to eat too much garlic and cause problems for your health. People often think that if some of something is good for them, then more must be better, but this isn't necessarily true. Too much of some healthy substances can be poisonous.

Towards the bottom of this page there are sections for Precautions and Interactions. Take a look: Garlic | University of Maryland Medical Center
Click to expand...

So true GG. Just like drinking too much water in a short time can cause a person to drown.

They know that garlic is beneficial for the heart. There is a product that you can purchase OTC called Garlique. But it can be deadly for diabetics. It can cause a sudden drop in your sugar. There is even a warning that can't be missed right on the package.

Too much of most animal livers can cause an overdose of Vitamin A. Even predatory animals do not eat the liver of their kill. :angel:
 
proverbs said:
Hello everyone.

Well, I love garlic. Unfortunately, I can't eat them raw because I stink and everyone I come in contact with wants to run away from me if I do. But I do cook a ton of my dishes with garlic. Most of the time, I will boil them so they are easily mash-able so I can put them in my dishes. However, since I love them so much, I can easily eat 10+ garlic cloves with one meal. For example, today I cooked a chicken breast with a soy sauce based soup/sauce. I boiled about 15 garlic cloves in the sauce for about an hour. I then mashed them all up and ate it with my chicken.

Is it ok to consume this much garlic? I do love the flavor, but a big part of why I try and add garlic in my cooking is also for the health benefits. Am I still receiving nutrients from the boiled garlic, or are all the health benefits gone after they are boiled? Is there a better way to cook them?

TIA for any advice and suggestions!
Click to expand...
There has been some work carried out which suggests that excessive consumption of garlic can caused haemolytic anaemia.

Prevention of garlic-induced hemolytic anemia usi... [J Med Food. 2004] - PubMed - NCBI

I don't know what constitutes an excessive amount in humans but in horses a study showed that they had to consume 750 grammes a day (roughly a pound and a half) to induce the anaema. (The recommended dose of the 100% garlic powder I give Horse in one level teaspoon twice a day - nowhere near the equivalent of 750 grammes of fresh garlic!)

On the good side it has been shown to help the heart (a friend's husband was advised by his cardiologist to eat garlic for his heart's sake), in dogs and horses (and probably humans) it deters intestinal worms (although it shouldn't be used as an alternative to conventional antihelmintics), it's said to be good for the respiratory system and it deters flies and midges (it works for Horse in this last case). During the WWI they used to mash up garlic and use it on field dressings as an antiseptic.

There is a French (unscientific) theory that the more you consume the less you smell of it. I can't vouch for the truth of this.
 
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Cheryl J said:
I've never boiled it before, but I do love it roasted and mashed on toasted French bread. :yum: I eat a fair amount but nowhere near 10-15 cloves a day. :)

Welcome to DC!
Click to expand...

I put a couple of peeled cloves in the water with the potatoes and leave them there. Then when I mash them I mash them right with the potatoes. :angel:
 
Fair question GG, Sorry I did not get back to you quicker, just time differences.There are certain foods that can have an adverse affect on the blood/liver/heart when eaten to excess. It doesn't mean as in 'getting hot' because of the external temperature (weather for instance) but internally by making these organs work much harder, so like any engine, can overheat Overdosing on vitamins is another cause sometimes. Check out this site as I am sure it will explain it better than me. Heat Stress - Princeton University
web.princeton.edu/sites/ehs/heatstress/heatstress.htm
 
menumaker said:
Fair question GG, Sorry I did not get back to you quicker, just time differences.There are certain foods that can have an adverse affect on the blood/liver/heart when eaten to excess. It doesn't mean as in 'getting hot' because of the external temperature (weather for instance) but internally by making these organs work much harder, so like any engine, can overheat Overdosing on vitamins is another cause sometimes. Check out this site as I am sure it will explain it better than me. Heat Stress - Princeton University
web.princeton.edu/sites/ehs/heatstress/heatstress.htm
Click to expand...

Thanks, MM. I understand what you mean, although that article is about too much exposure to environmental heat.
 
Thanks for all the replies!

Ok, so I will cut my garlic consumption down to about 3-5 cloves a day I guess. It's just that when you boil them and mash them, they are so easy to eat. The flavor is not strong at all and you can easily eat 10 cloves.

How about as far as nutritional benefits when eating the garlic raw vs. cooked? From what I've read, it's best to eat it raw, AFTER they have been chopped up. However, since the smell is so strong, I usually boil and eat them. Does this strip the nutrients from the garlic?
 
proverbs said:
Thanks for all the replies!

Ok, so I will cut my garlic consumption down to about 3-5 cloves a day I guess. It's just that when you boil them and mash them, they are so easy to eat. The flavor is not strong at all and you can easily eat 10 cloves.

How about as far as nutritional benefits when eating the garlic raw vs. cooked? From what I've read, it's best to eat it raw, AFTER they have been chopped up. However, since the smell is so strong, I usually boil and eat them. Does this strip the nutrients from the garlic?
Click to expand...

Personally unless you are on the dating circuit, who cares about garlic smell?
I love the stuff and pay little if any attention this perceived problem.

Has anyone told you they smell garlic on you? I may smell like garlic (i hope not) but no one ever mentioned it including my close family.
My wife would tell me if there was an issue.

So, whats the real issue. Love of garlic or concern about others perception of you?
 
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