Home | Table of Contents Volume 4 Issue 3
If the term "wonder drug" can be applied to any healing herb, garlic deserves that distinction. It is the world's second oldest medicine (after ephedra), and still among the best. The "stinking rose" is featured in the Bible and in Homer's Odyssey. Odysseus used it to keep the sorceress Circe from turning him into a pig. Aristotle, Hippocrates, Galen, Aristophanes, Virgil, and Pliney were very familiar with this miracle healer for conditions that could fill a medical dictionary. While garlic has traditionally been used as a flavoring, it has also enjoyed a long history as a medicinal herb. Written accounts dating back 5,000 years mention garlic as both a food and a highly sought-after herbal remedy. The earliest written medical records contain detailed accounts of how garlic was used to prevent and treat disease. Garlic has been used medicinally for at least 4,000 years. The Egyptians swore on a clove of garlic when they took a solemn oath. Egyptian pharaohs were entombed with carvings of garlic fashioned from either wood or clay. The Egyptian slaves ate garlic as they build the pyramids. Until the turn of the century, no doctor's "black bag" would be without it. It was used widely in both world wars, in hospitals and on the battlefield, to treat infection. In World War I, battlefield physicians successfully prevented gangrene with poultices soaked in the juice of garlic. Athletes at the first Olympic games in Greece were said to use garlic as a stimulant. Garlic has been used to treat conditions as diverse as angina pectoris, bronchitis, tuberculosis, appendicitis, malaria, boils, heart disease, tumors and various skin diseases. Albert Schweitzer used it at his clinic to treat an astounding variety of diseases. He used it in Africa to treat amoebic dysentery. Garlic was also believed by a number of cultures to have the power to ward off vampires. Transylvanian peasants hung garlands of it over their windows and doorways to banish the fanged devils and evil spirits, and garlic cloves were hung around the necks of young girls throughout Europe to protect them from the vampire's deadly Kiss. (Must work. We don't see many vampires around today!) The physician Galen, whose medical knowledge dominated the world for more than a thousand years, used garlic to treat a variety of illnesses and disorders. Perhaps the most intriguing stemmed from the tendency of political rivals to "defeat" their opponents by poisoning them. Galen used garlic as a successful antidote to most poisons used in that day. At this point, it was still folklore. Today, scientists are taking a serious look. In fact, in the past 20 years, 2,000 studies have been done by top researchers to establish garlic's potential impact on the most serious modern diseases. One research report on garlic concluded that the herb may have direct benefits against the "seven major diseases of our time":hypertension (high blood pressure), hyperlipemia (high cholesterol), heavy metal intoxication, infectious diseases, free-radical damage, cancer, and immune deficiency diseases. Renewed interest in garlic as a powerful food supplement with potential medicinal properties has been a major factor in the development of the "Designer Foods Program", a five-year, $20.5 million program sponsored by the National Cancer Institute. This program is aimed at identifying foods that may prevent cancer and prevent cells from becoming cancerous.		The immune system is the body's main line of defense, not only against minor irritations such as the common cold, but against life-threatening diseases such as cancer. A healthy immune system features a powerful "surveillance" system that seeks out and destroys defective or mutinous cells. When the immune system is compromised, the body is not as adept at fighting off invading organisms-the body becomes susceptible to a variety of bacterial, fungal, and viral diseases. If the immune system is completely inactivated, the body is unable to fight off invading organisms. We all know with the cats that many things will compromise their immune systems. To name a few: poor diet, stress, disease, birth abnormalities, breeding and showing, and even getting old. Fortunately, we have several things that will build the immune system. Garlic is one. To understand how garlic enhances immunity, here is how the immune system works. There are five major categories of immune cells: the B-lymphocytes, the T-lymphocytes, the phagocytes, the killer cells, and the natural killer cells. The B-lymphocytes have the ability to recognize foreign substances or invaders; the B-lymphocytes produce antibodies in response to these foreign invaders. The antibodies attack and bind to the invading substances, finally inactivating or destroying them. Once manufactured, the antibodies can consistently recognize and destroy those specific invaders; this principle is what makes it possible for immunizations to protect against disease. When the body is first invaded by as foreign substance, the production of antibodies takes quite a long time, so it is possible for the invader to cause serious illness, and even death. But once B-lymphocytes memorize a foreign substance, they are then able to produce antibodies as soon as the invader is recognized, preventing illness and death. For example, a tiny amount of the calici virus is introduced into the cat's body with their vaccinations. The B-lymphocytes recognize the virus as foreign substance, and start producing antibodies that destroy the virus. Any subsequent calici virus that later enters the cat's body will be destroyed by these same antibodies, which are permanently programmed to destroy the calici virus. The remaining categories of immune system cells-the T lymphocytes, phagocytes, killer cells, and natural killer cells-respond by directly attacking the invaders. These are the cells, for example, that launch a direct attack on cancer cells, streptococcal bacteria, and other disease organisms. T lymphocytes also produce a variety of chemicals called lymphokines that control or modulate the immune system through either stimulation or suppression. Garlic is effective against bacteria, even against strains that usually resist treatment, including staphylococcus, mycobacteria, salmonella, and the species of Proteus bacteria. A variety of experiments has shown that garlic is also effective against viral infections. Of course, one of the reason that garlic is so effective against both bacteria and viruses is that it stimulates the immune system, which then mounts its own attack. Garlic is also effective against parasites. It has been used successfully to treat tapeworm, hookworm, pinworms, Giardia, and roundworms. And of course, it has successfully treated fungal infections. Most cat breeders know that fungal infections can be difficult to treat. They can resist traditional treatment effort, and many of the drugs available for the treatment of fungal infections are toxic when given at high enough doses to be effective or over a long enough period to successfully treat the infection. It is also said that garlic makes the cat's body unattractive to fleas. But beware, don't use garlic salt or supermarket garlic flavoring. These are only flavors-not the real thing. The only garlic that you should use is one that is cold-processed, since heat destroys all the good that Mother Nature put into the garlic. And of course, Nature's Sunshine has the best. Actually, we have three forms. The first is garlic oil in gel caps. You can puncture one to put into the cat's ears for an ear infection. Our regular garlic, which is my most popular version, is three times stronger than anyone else's and is processed at 480 degrees below zero. I feed about 12-15 adults and put two capsules into their food daily. Another benefit of feeding garlic is that once they get used to the flavor, you can put anything in their food, and all they taste is the garlic! A standard rule of thumb with herbs is that the strongest healing herbs are the most bitter. So if you are trying to heal, those herbs will not taste good in the food. I have been putting garlic in my cat's food since I started using these herbs. Even kitten weaning formulas will have garlic. This is also the time of year for the big "F's," so remember your black walnut and tea tree oil. (For those of you who haven't been following my articles, that's black walnut for fungus and tea tree oil for fleas.) If any of you have questions that you would like to have me answer, please feel free to either call (1-800-887-4372) or write to me at Up With Herbs, 965 So. Saginaw Rd., Midland, MI 48640. Don't forget, I live in Michigan, so remember the time changes when you call. My hours are 10:00 until 6:00. I love talking to you, so don't hesitate to call. Until the next-issue-have a naturally healthy pet!