Garlic is one of the natural ingredients that is often used in medicine, including to lower blood pressure thigh or hypertension. However, is it true that garlic can overcome hypertension?
is one of the most common diseases in Indonesia. Based on data from the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Indonesia in 2018, there was an increase in the number of people with hypertension compared to the previous 5 years.
A person is said to have hypertension if his blood pressure has reached 140/90 mmHg or more. Hypertension can cause dangerous complications in various organs of the body, such as kidney failure, heart attack, or stroke, if left untreated.
Garlic Can Lower Cholesterol
Garlic can help lower cholesterol, which is one of the factors that increase blood pressure. In this case, garlic works by inhibiting the absorption of cholesterol from food in the digestive tract.
Garlic is also able to inhibit the work of enzymes HMG-CoA (3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme A) reductase and hepatic cholesterol 7α-hydroxylase which plays a major role in the formation of cholesterol. Thus, the production of cholesterol will decrease.
Overcoming Hypertension with Garlic
In addition to lowering cholesterol, which can indirectly lower blood pressure, garlic also contains substances that help maintain normal blood pressure. According to research, natural substances in garlic that can lower blood pressure include:
- Allicin ( allyl 2-propenethiosulfinate or diallyl thiosulfinate )
- Allyl methyl thiosulfonate
- 1-propenyl allyl thiosulfonate
- Y-L-glutamyl-S-alkyl-L-cysteine
The substances contained in garlic work by stimulating the body to produce substances nitric oxide (NO) and hhydrogen sulphide (H2S). Both substances will reduce the tension in the blood vessels which makes blood pressure increase. The weakening of the blood vessels will be followed by a decrease in blood pressure.
In addition, garlic also works by inhibiting the action of endothelin 1 and angiotensin II, which in turn also relaxes blood vessels.
But unfortunately, the content of the active substance in 1 clove of garlic is not necessarily the same, so the therapeutic effect obtained will also be different.
Therefore, before using garlic as an alternative to additional therapy to treat hypertension, you should first consult with an internal medicine doctor or nutritionist.
Written by:
dr. Diani Adrina, SpGK(Clinical Nutrition Specialist)
