AGED garlic extract DOES MATTER
July 13, 2001 | 12:00am
In an age where science is making leaps and bounds, researchers are continuing to look into the traditional medicines that have helped people for thousands of years. The lowly garlic has achieved star status in this search for natural medicine. What used to be called "the stinking rose" is now called "the miracle nutrient" and "modern medicine."
The smell and taste aside, garlic’s healing properties are no longer consigned to folklore (well, maybe they could still work against our manananggals). Since the mid-1970s, over 2,000 studies have been conducted by top researchers around the world on garlic’s effect on modern diseases. Research has shown that it can help reduce cardiovascular diseases, fight stress, boost the immune system, help reduce the risk of cancer, and fight fatigue.
In both World Wars, garlic was used by battlefield doctors to treat wounded soldiers from infection and to prevent gangrene. And in cultures around the world, garlic has been part of traditional medicine used to treat appendicitis, bronchitis, leprosy and skin conditions.
It is this process of turning nature’s creation into medicine for the modern age that was the highlight of a seminar on our recent trip to Japan. The Kyolic Japan Tour was participated by delegates – pharmacists, journalists, health food store owners and retailers – from Thailand, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Portugal, Norway, Israel, the US and the Philippines. Hosted by General Nutrition Center Philippines and Wakunaga, a Japanese pharmaceutical company with heavy interest in natural medicine and research, the Filipino journalists were given a tour of Wakunaga’s garlic farm in Hokkaido and their research institute in Hiroshima.
The Japanese – with their basic diet rich in fish and soy and low in saturated fat and low heart disease rate – have always known that garlic helps the body to heal itself. Though they don’t usually use garlic in their food, as it "kills the delicate taste of Japanese food," they are proponents of natural medicine and self-medication.
So if garlic is good, why not just pop a raw clove in your mouth every four hours? Aside from the enormous risk of losing all your friends and getting anonymous letters about your dragon breath, large amounts of raw garlic may cause diarrhea, nausea, vomiting and burning sensations.
Studies have shown that toxic effects of large doses of raw garlic include anemia, bronchial asthma, contact dermatitis, low sperm count, and other stomach disorders. A study published in The Journal of Toxicological Sciences showed that healthy rats fed raw garlic suffered extensive stomach damage including swelling, ulceration and massive bleeding.
Or why not cook garlic? Because garlic is sensitive to processing, heat destroys many of its benefits. Though cooking removes most of its toxicity, the health benefits do vary with each cooking method.
It was only after the Second World War that an advanced process was developed to enhance the garlic’s beneficial compounds. The unlikely partnership between the German Dr. Eugene Schnell and Japanese banker Manji Wakunaga was responsible for developing a garlic product that had all the benefits and none of the side effects of garlic.
Dr. Schnell, a former professor of medicinal chemistry at Berlin University, discovered the process of aging garlic bulbs for over 20 months in stainless steel tanks. The process converts the aromatic ingredients into water-soluble and odorless compounds, resulting in a product known as Kyolic Aged Garlic Extract (AGE). In Japan, the product is called Kyo-Leopin, which the Japanese usually take in liquid form.
This natural cold-aging process used to manufacture the garlic increases its efficacy and safety, and decreases its odor, harshness and toxicity.
Dr. Harunobu Amagase of Wakunaga of America explains that the aging process utilizes the natural enzymes in garlic, makes it gentle on the stomach while generating unique and beneficial compounds such as S-allyl Cysteine (SAC), S-allylmercaptocysteine (SAMC), Spirostanal Saponins, and Carbolines and Fructosyl Argyne which are very strong antioxidants. By slowly aging the garlic without heat, its volatile agents are transformed into dozens of concentrated, valuable, stable, safe, and odorless constituents. "These include S-allyl-cysteine and S-allyl mercatocysteine, which are only found in trace quantities in raw garlic."
"More than 200 compounds can be found in garlic," Dr. Amagase says. "The natural bioconversion process that takes place during aging modifies the garlic to make the beneficial compounds more active. In short, it accumulates the useful benefits and makes it more potent."
A contentious compound in garlic is allicin, which other commercial manufacturers base their marketing campaigns on. In a sea of health supplements, choosing a garlic product can get confusing. According to Dr. Amagase, allicin is not present in raw garlic or garlic products, is not absorbed by the body and is not effective on cholesterol synthesis.
Allicin is the substance that gives garlic its distinctive odor – and toxicity. It is produced only when the raw garlic is sliced. Notice how a raw garlic bulb does not smell? Raw garlic does have aliin, which is converted to allicin when the garlic is crushed. Allicin is controversial because many health supplement companies declare this garlic compound to be an active ingredient in their products even when allicin decomposes rapidly at room temperature.
Kyolic Aged Garlic Extract, on the other hand, was found to be effective in lowering blood cholesterol levels in several studies. In a book by Dr. Benjamin Lau, he discusses a study involving 32 subjects with elevated levels of cholesterol, randomly divided into two groups. One group received four capsules a day of Kyolic liquid garlic extract; the other, four capsules of placebo.
"Beginning in the third month, we saw a significant drop in serum lipids; by six months, the lipids reached a low level – approaching normal values."
The second part of the study used a sample with normal range of serum lipids. The methods were repeated. The results: Lipid parameters in both groups remained virtually unchanged by the end of the study.
The third part of the study used subjects with high blood cholesterol. "After an initial rise in blood cholesterol and triglycerides, 65 percent experienced a drop in serum lipid levels."
"Interest in the cholesterol lowering effect of garlic is widespread," writes Dr. Lau. "People continue to report benefits from taking garlic, not only for lowering cholesterol, but for blood pressure and other risk factors contributing to heart attacks and strokes."
It’s a different story altogether with commercial garlic oil. A double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled study on garlic oil preparation on serum lipoproteins and cholesterol metabolism showed that "The commercial garlic oil preparation investigated had no influence on serum lipoproteins, cholesterol absorption or cholesterol synthesis." The 25 subjects were 52-year-olds with high cholesterol (240 to 348 mg/dL) and were observed for 12 weeks.
Independent studies that compare AGE and other garlic products on the market show that only Kyolic AGE has antioxidant effects.
Belonging to the lily family – along with onions, chives and leeks – garlic and its end-bottled product largely depend on how it is grown and processed.
Wakunaga Pharmaceutical Company, with its long tradition in scientific research and manufacturing of medicinal herbs, uses time-tested organic farming techniques.
The founder Manji Wakunaga’s philosophy was that medicinal herb preparations must be made from genuinely natural and organic herbs grown in rich, uncontaminated soil. So he found virgin land in Nayoro in Hokkaido, the northernmost tip of Japan, that was surrounded by mountains. The 100-hectare Wakunaga farms are isolated from pollution and soil contamination because it is here that the raw material is grown and will eventually enter the Japanese market under the name Kyo-Leopin (the name Kyolic is used outside Japan).
The Wakunaga farm in Nayoro is divided into four portions. Garlic is planted only in one portion of land every year, which means that it is planted in the same land only every four years. The soil is cultivated and prepared with organic compost for planting in autumn. In winter the garlic cloves slowly grow under the snow, sprout in spring and finally the bulbs appear and are harvested in summer.
Wakunaga has two farms in Japan and another in California, where the same organic farming techniques are used, to supply its worldwide needs. Free from chemicals, fertilizers and herbicides, the garlic crop is tested for conformity to quality standards. At the Wakunaga Production Plant and Research Laboratories, the cloves are cleaned and sliced, and then stored in stainless steel tanks and naturally aged – without heating – which distinguishes Kyolic from other garlic products on the market.
"With this cold-aging process, the harsh and unstable organosulfur compounds are converted into mild and effective compounds, including the sulfur-containing amino acids that are responsible for Kyolic’s health benefits. This conversion eliminates the odor-causing components, resulting in odorless Kyolic Aged Garlic Extract that contains safe, stable, bioavailable and beneficial compounds."
In the Philippines, Kyolic Aged Garlic is distributed by General Nutrition Center (GNC).
The smell and taste aside, garlic’s healing properties are no longer consigned to folklore (well, maybe they could still work against our manananggals). Since the mid-1970s, over 2,000 studies have been conducted by top researchers around the world on garlic’s effect on modern diseases. Research has shown that it can help reduce cardiovascular diseases, fight stress, boost the immune system, help reduce the risk of cancer, and fight fatigue.
In both World Wars, garlic was used by battlefield doctors to treat wounded soldiers from infection and to prevent gangrene. And in cultures around the world, garlic has been part of traditional medicine used to treat appendicitis, bronchitis, leprosy and skin conditions.
It is this process of turning nature’s creation into medicine for the modern age that was the highlight of a seminar on our recent trip to Japan. The Kyolic Japan Tour was participated by delegates – pharmacists, journalists, health food store owners and retailers – from Thailand, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Portugal, Norway, Israel, the US and the Philippines. Hosted by General Nutrition Center Philippines and Wakunaga, a Japanese pharmaceutical company with heavy interest in natural medicine and research, the Filipino journalists were given a tour of Wakunaga’s garlic farm in Hokkaido and their research institute in Hiroshima.
The Japanese – with their basic diet rich in fish and soy and low in saturated fat and low heart disease rate – have always known that garlic helps the body to heal itself. Though they don’t usually use garlic in their food, as it "kills the delicate taste of Japanese food," they are proponents of natural medicine and self-medication.
So if garlic is good, why not just pop a raw clove in your mouth every four hours? Aside from the enormous risk of losing all your friends and getting anonymous letters about your dragon breath, large amounts of raw garlic may cause diarrhea, nausea, vomiting and burning sensations.
Studies have shown that toxic effects of large doses of raw garlic include anemia, bronchial asthma, contact dermatitis, low sperm count, and other stomach disorders. A study published in The Journal of Toxicological Sciences showed that healthy rats fed raw garlic suffered extensive stomach damage including swelling, ulceration and massive bleeding.
Or why not cook garlic? Because garlic is sensitive to processing, heat destroys many of its benefits. Though cooking removes most of its toxicity, the health benefits do vary with each cooking method.
It was only after the Second World War that an advanced process was developed to enhance the garlic’s beneficial compounds. The unlikely partnership between the German Dr. Eugene Schnell and Japanese banker Manji Wakunaga was responsible for developing a garlic product that had all the benefits and none of the side effects of garlic.
Dr. Schnell, a former professor of medicinal chemistry at Berlin University, discovered the process of aging garlic bulbs for over 20 months in stainless steel tanks. The process converts the aromatic ingredients into water-soluble and odorless compounds, resulting in a product known as Kyolic Aged Garlic Extract (AGE). In Japan, the product is called Kyo-Leopin, which the Japanese usually take in liquid form.
This natural cold-aging process used to manufacture the garlic increases its efficacy and safety, and decreases its odor, harshness and toxicity.
Dr. Harunobu Amagase of Wakunaga of America explains that the aging process utilizes the natural enzymes in garlic, makes it gentle on the stomach while generating unique and beneficial compounds such as S-allyl Cysteine (SAC), S-allylmercaptocysteine (SAMC), Spirostanal Saponins, and Carbolines and Fructosyl Argyne which are very strong antioxidants. By slowly aging the garlic without heat, its volatile agents are transformed into dozens of concentrated, valuable, stable, safe, and odorless constituents. "These include S-allyl-cysteine and S-allyl mercatocysteine, which are only found in trace quantities in raw garlic."
"More than 200 compounds can be found in garlic," Dr. Amagase says. "The natural bioconversion process that takes place during aging modifies the garlic to make the beneficial compounds more active. In short, it accumulates the useful benefits and makes it more potent."
A contentious compound in garlic is allicin, which other commercial manufacturers base their marketing campaigns on. In a sea of health supplements, choosing a garlic product can get confusing. According to Dr. Amagase, allicin is not present in raw garlic or garlic products, is not absorbed by the body and is not effective on cholesterol synthesis.
Allicin is the substance that gives garlic its distinctive odor – and toxicity. It is produced only when the raw garlic is sliced. Notice how a raw garlic bulb does not smell? Raw garlic does have aliin, which is converted to allicin when the garlic is crushed. Allicin is controversial because many health supplement companies declare this garlic compound to be an active ingredient in their products even when allicin decomposes rapidly at room temperature.
Kyolic Aged Garlic Extract, on the other hand, was found to be effective in lowering blood cholesterol levels in several studies. In a book by Dr. Benjamin Lau, he discusses a study involving 32 subjects with elevated levels of cholesterol, randomly divided into two groups. One group received four capsules a day of Kyolic liquid garlic extract; the other, four capsules of placebo.
"Beginning in the third month, we saw a significant drop in serum lipids; by six months, the lipids reached a low level – approaching normal values."
The second part of the study used a sample with normal range of serum lipids. The methods were repeated. The results: Lipid parameters in both groups remained virtually unchanged by the end of the study.
The third part of the study used subjects with high blood cholesterol. "After an initial rise in blood cholesterol and triglycerides, 65 percent experienced a drop in serum lipid levels."
"Interest in the cholesterol lowering effect of garlic is widespread," writes Dr. Lau. "People continue to report benefits from taking garlic, not only for lowering cholesterol, but for blood pressure and other risk factors contributing to heart attacks and strokes."
It’s a different story altogether with commercial garlic oil. A double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled study on garlic oil preparation on serum lipoproteins and cholesterol metabolism showed that "The commercial garlic oil preparation investigated had no influence on serum lipoproteins, cholesterol absorption or cholesterol synthesis." The 25 subjects were 52-year-olds with high cholesterol (240 to 348 mg/dL) and were observed for 12 weeks.
Independent studies that compare AGE and other garlic products on the market show that only Kyolic AGE has antioxidant effects.
Belonging to the lily family – along with onions, chives and leeks – garlic and its end-bottled product largely depend on how it is grown and processed.
Wakunaga Pharmaceutical Company, with its long tradition in scientific research and manufacturing of medicinal herbs, uses time-tested organic farming techniques.
The founder Manji Wakunaga’s philosophy was that medicinal herb preparations must be made from genuinely natural and organic herbs grown in rich, uncontaminated soil. So he found virgin land in Nayoro in Hokkaido, the northernmost tip of Japan, that was surrounded by mountains. The 100-hectare Wakunaga farms are isolated from pollution and soil contamination because it is here that the raw material is grown and will eventually enter the Japanese market under the name Kyo-Leopin (the name Kyolic is used outside Japan).
The Wakunaga farm in Nayoro is divided into four portions. Garlic is planted only in one portion of land every year, which means that it is planted in the same land only every four years. The soil is cultivated and prepared with organic compost for planting in autumn. In winter the garlic cloves slowly grow under the snow, sprout in spring and finally the bulbs appear and are harvested in summer.
Wakunaga has two farms in Japan and another in California, where the same organic farming techniques are used, to supply its worldwide needs. Free from chemicals, fertilizers and herbicides, the garlic crop is tested for conformity to quality standards. At the Wakunaga Production Plant and Research Laboratories, the cloves are cleaned and sliced, and then stored in stainless steel tanks and naturally aged – without heating – which distinguishes Kyolic from other garlic products on the market.
"With this cold-aging process, the harsh and unstable organosulfur compounds are converted into mild and effective compounds, including the sulfur-containing amino acids that are responsible for Kyolic’s health benefits. This conversion eliminates the odor-causing components, resulting in odorless Kyolic Aged Garlic Extract that contains safe, stable, bioavailable and beneficial compounds."
In the Philippines, Kyolic Aged Garlic is distributed by General Nutrition Center (GNC).
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