Garlic and Pregnancy

The list of garlic’s health benefits expands as new research shows that garlic may reduce the pregnancy complications. According to research conducted by Dr. Sooranna, Ms. Hirani, and Dr. Das from the Academic Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital in London, the consumption of garlic during pregnancy has many advantages. First of all, the risk of pre-eclampsia, which is caused by raised blood pressure and protein retained in the urine, is reduced. This condition occurs in about one in ten pregnancies and is a dangerous condition for both the mother and the baby. In their studies, the researchers also discovered that eating garlic during pregnancies may increase the birth weight of babies that would otherwise suffer from a small, unhealthy birth weight. According to the Garlic Information Centre in the United Kingdom,

“experiments by the research team showed that adding extracts of garlic to cells from the placenta of women likely to suffer from these conditions was able to quickly stimulate growth.”

Also, after eating garlic, enzymes that are reduced in abnormal pregnancies are significantly increased in pregnant women. Because of all of the advantages of eating garlic during pregnancy, a pregnant woman should definitely consume at least a clove of garlic daily.