Fact check: Can a clove of garlic a day cure high blood pressure?

THE CLAIM:

A YouTube short video claims that a clove of Garlic a day can cure Hypertension. The video posted by user Healthy Lifestyle claims Garlic has been used for centuries for its medicinal properties. It highlights 9 diseases that can be cured by consuming a clove of garlic a day. This includes High blood pressure, High cholesterol, Heart disease, Colds and flu, Digestive issues, Joint pain, Cancer Prevention, Skin infections, Respiratory infections

Amongst the various claims, there is a claim that clove of garlic can cure high blood pressure.

The video can be accessed on this link.

Fact check:

The claim is False. There is no cure for high blood pressure.

What is high blood pressure?

The medical term for high blood pressure is hypertension. American Heart Association describes hypertension or high blood pressure as, ‘‘High blood pressure, also referred to as hypertension, is when your blood pressure, the force of blood flowing through your blood vessels, is consistently too high is common but can be serious if not treated.”(1) As per WHO, An estimated 1.28 billion adults aged 30–79 years worldwide have hypertension, most (two-thirds) living in low- and middle-income countries. (2). In India, nationally, more than 1 in 4 people have hypertension, and cumulatively, more than 90% of adults with hypertension are either undiagnosed, untreated, or treated but with uncontrolled hypertension. (3)

Hypertension can cause serious damage to the heart. Excessive blood pressure causes hardening of the arteries, decreasing blood flow and oxygen supply to the heart. It also affects the kidney, eventually resulting in kidney failure. The effect on both the heart and kidneys is life-threatening.

What causes high blood pressure?

Speaking to the Medical Dialogues team, Dr Manav Aggarwal, Consultant Cardiologist at Sanjeevan Hospital, explained, “Hypertension, or high blood pressure, can have various primary and secondary causes. It can be caused by factors such as genetics, unhealthy lifestyle habits like poor diet and lack of exercise, stress, smoking, alcohol consumption, certain medications, underlying health conditions (like kidney disease or sleep apnea), and age-related changes in blood vessels.”

Are there any benefits of garlic in High blood pressure?

Garlic has been used for centuries for its medicinal properties and health benefits. It contains allicin, a compound thought to have vasodilative properties—meaning it can help expand blood vessels, thereby reducing blood pressure. Garlic has been studied for its potential benefits in managing hypertension.

Medical evidence shows that garlic consumption might have some BP-lowering properties.

In 2020, Kerien Reid performed a systematic review of 12 trials and 553 hypertensive participants that showed that garlic supplements lower systolic blood pressure (SBP) by an average of 8.3±1.9 mmHg and diastolic blood pressure (DBP, n=8 trials, n=374 subjects) by 5.5±1.9 mmHg, similarly to standard anti-hypertensive medications(4)

Another study by Rohner et al., in the form of a systematic review and meta-analysis, suggested that garlic preparations may lower BP in hypertensive individuals. However, the study's authors noted that this evidence is not strong, and a well-conducted and powered trial of longer duration is needed to confirm these findings. (5)

It is important to note here that in many of the studies that show a positive effect of garlic on high BP, these effects are typically observed with garlic supplements, which contain concentrated doses of active ingredients, not necessarily with a single clove of garlic.

Can garlic cure high blood pressure?

No, hypertension or high blood pressure can't be cured. "Cure" means to completely resolve or eliminate a condition permanently, and hypertension as a disease cannot be cured, only managed.

Garlic can potentially help manage the condition as part of a broader health strategy, but it cannot cure it alone.

Speaking to the Medical Dialogues team, Dr Prem Aggarwal, Cardiologist and Chairman of Sanjeevan Hospitals, said, “The term "cure" implies that the condition can be completely and permanently eradicated. Hypertension is a chronic condition that typically requires ongoing management, including lifestyle changes, medication, and monitoring. There are many medical studies that show the benefits of garlic on hypertension. But Garlic alone, especially just one clove per day, does not meet the medical definition of a cure for high blood pressure. This claim is false and misleading.”

Medical Dialogues final take:

Garlic is not a cure for hypertension or high blood pressure as it cannot be cured and can be only managed. Further, while there are studies that show the impact of garlic supplements on reducing blood pressure, there is no study or consensus from the medical field that states that a clove of garlic a day can cure high blood pressure. Hence, this claim is FALSE.

References:

1. https://www.heart.org/en/health-topics/high-blood-pressure.

2. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/hypertension/?gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAjwrIixBhBbEiwACEqDJYTwOdhJ1EnRvqBRa6nJ2NOZCsumk71QauqmSLroD2owlT4ojM06ABoCdoYQAvD_BwE.

3.https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2810984#:~:text=In%20India%2C%20nationally%2C%20more%20than,treated%20but%20with%20uncontrolled%20hypertension.

4. (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6966103/)

5. Andres Rohner, Karin Ried, Igor A. Sobenin, Heiner C. Bucher, Alain J. Nordmann, A Systematic Review and Metaanalysis on the Effects of Garlic Preparations on Blood Pressure in Individuals With Hypertension, American Journal of Hypertension, Volume 28, Issue 3, March 2015, Pages 414–423, https://doi.org/10.1093/ajh/hpu165.