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By Serge Kreutz (2010)
Garlic has a great reputation. It's a real cure-all. Let me quote just one of the representatives of the garlic fraction, Dr. Weil:
"Garlic has abilities to lower cholesterol and reduce the clotting tendency of the blood. It can also help lower high blood pressure. In addition raw garlic is a potent antibiotic, especially active against fungal infections, with antibacterial and antiviral effects as well? I recommend one or two cloves of garlic a day to people who suffer from chronic or recurrent infections, frequent yeast infections, or low resistance to infection. Try it; it really works."
I have seen reports that list garlic as the best life-extension drug available. And I have never seen a report critical of garlic.
As my readers know, I have tried practically everything that has been advertised as an herbal supplement for sexual enhancement.
I have also tried many supplements, herbal and synthetic, that are said to promote general health. However, my main interest has always been sexual enhancement.
I am aware that a satisfying sex life is bound to good general health. It is for this reason that I generally lead a healthy life-style, without cigarettes, alcohol, and coffee. And it is for this reason that I have turned to vitamins (temporarily) and a number of herbals said to support good health up to a ripe age, such as garlic.
I have long ago discarded arginine capsules, muira puama, damiana, and multivitamins. These substances are promoted largely not for the health of buyers, but for the purpose of healthy gains on the part of the sellers. What is published about these supplements is mostly spam.
I have been less critical with garlic. After all, those who publish excited reports about garlic on the Internet usually have no stake in the supermarket where you may buy a few heads.
For several years, I have, off and on, consumed substantial amounts of garlic (several gloves before retiring in the evening several times a week), and I can attest to it that it takes care of elevated blood pressure. And I don't know how many infections I would have had to endure without garlic. Sure, garlic is healthy.
And because high blood pressure and nervousness are counterproductive to great sex, I have assumed that garlic would make a difference in favour of good sex.
Sure, garlic does make a difference. But not in the expected manner.
I have taken garlic in generous portions only sometimes, maybe over a week or two, and then left it out for longer periods.
I became suspicious only recently when a straight of about four weeks of great libido came to a rather abrupt end. The only thing I had changed in my daily routine was to initiate generous garlic supplementation.
I then did, among others, a web research for "garlic testosterone".
It is not uncommon for plant food to interfere with testosterone; many herbs are so-called phyto(plant)estrogens, and saw palmetto, pygeum, and pumpkin seeds specifically interfere with the synthesis of dihydrotestosterone, the most potent form of testosterone.
Dihydrotestosterone plays a role both in benign prostate enlargement (hypertrophy) and prostate cancer. This has given dihydrotestosterone a bad name for years.
But a scientific study has also shown that only increased dihydrotestosterone levels, and not increased levels of bound or free testosterone, are correlated to increased sexual activity.
I have never had much success romping up my libido or quality of performance with forcing my testosterone levels up. The opposite works much better. For example, I can reliably kill my erectile capacity with supplements such as saw palmetto and pygeum, both of which block the synthesis (by the enzyme 5-alpha-reductase) of dihydrotestosterone from testosterone.
And my search for "garlic testosterone" revealed that garlic is doing pretty much the same, though probably a bit more gently then saw palmetto.
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Interested to try tongkat ali. You can buy a trial set from Sumatra
Pasak Bumi at www.tongkatali.org. The trial set includes 1:50 and
1:200 extract capsules, as well as aged and fresh, stone-dried root
chips and root powder. (flo*r)
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Bruce Harrielie,
Maros utca 1 Szeged,
Szeged 6721
Hungary