Verse knoflook het beste*
Vers,
klein gesneden, knoflook is het beste tegen hart- en vaatziektes dan gekookte of
gedroogde knoflook. Dit blijkt uit een studie weliswaar met ratten. Een van de
bioactieve stoffen in knoflook wordt door onze rode bloedcellen omgezet tot
zwavelwaterstof H2S. Zwavelwaterstof ontspant de bloedvaten en verbetert op die
manier de bloedcirculatie. Dit gebeurt alleen bij vers gesneden knoflook en niet
bij gekookte of gedroogde knoflook. Alle knoflookvarianten daarentegen reduceren
wel oxidatieschade.
Freshly Crushed Garlic Better For The Heart Than Processed
A new study reports what scientists term the first scientific evidence that freshly crushed garlic has more potent heart-healthy effects than dried garlic. Scheduled for the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, it also challenges the widespread belief that most of garlic's benefits are due to its rich array of antioxidants. Instead, garlic's heart-healthy effects seem to result mainly from hydrogen sulfide, a chemical signaling substance that forms after garlic is cut or crushed and relaxes blood vessels when
eaten.
In the study, Dipak K. Das and colleagues point out that raw, crushed garlic generates hydrogen sulfide through a chemical reaction. Although best known as the stuff that gives rotten eggs their distinctive odor, hydrogen sulfide also acts as a chemical messenger in the body, relaxing blood vessels and allowing more blood to pass through. Processed and cooked garlic, however, loses its ability to generate hydrogen sulfide.
The scientists gave freshly crushed garlic and processed garlic to two groups of lab rats, and then studied how well the animals' hearts recovered from simulated heart attacks. "Both crushed and processed garlic reduced damage from lack of oxygen, but the fresh garlic group had a significantly greater effect on restoring good blood flow in the aorta and increased pressure in the left ventricle of the heart," Das said.
Source
Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry (September
2009)
