Garlic Tea Benefits and Side Effects

Garlic tea is an herbal tonic made from lemon, honey, and garlic. The tea—served hot— is a popular remedy for cold symptoms, such as congestion and cough. Several medicinal uses of garlic are supported by scientific research, but not all garlic tea benefits have been proven in human studies.

What Is Garlic Tea?

Garlic (Allium sativum) is a perennial plant originally from Central Asia. The plant produces a bulb that is used in cooking and in health treatments around the world. Historians believe that Egyptians, Greeks, Romans, Chinese, Japanese, and Native Americans used garlic for dietary and medicinal purposes throughout history. Garlic is also known as the nectar of the gods, poor man's treacle, or stinking rose.

Garlic powder, garlic oil, and garlic supplements are readily available. Garlic supplements can either be made from garlic oil or from fresh, dried, or aged garlic. Each form of garlic may have a different effect on the body.

Garlic tea can be made with a variety of different ingredients, although garlic, lemon, and honey are the most common. Unless you combine garlic tea with another type of tea from the Camellia sinensis plant, garlic tea does not contain caffeine thus avoiding those potential side effects.

How to Make Garlic Tea at Home

You might find garlic tea bags online or in the health food store. However, garlic tea can easily be made at home with simple ingredients that you'll find at any market, including:

• 3-4 cloves of garlic
• 1/2 cup lemon juice
• 1/2 cup honey

Fill a saucepan with three cups of water. Add garlic cloves that have been peeled and cut in half. Bring the water to a boil. Remove from heat and add lemon juice and honey. Take out the garlic and serve warm or store to reheat for later.

There are variations to this garlic tea recipe. For example, some people add ginger to the tea for added flavor and increased health benefits. Also, the ginger reduces the strong garlic odor.

Garlic Tea Health Benefits

There is almost no ailment that garlic hasn't been credited with curing or relieving. Some, but not all garlic benefits are supported by scientific evidence. It is also important to keep in mind that these studies are looking at garlic, not garlic tea. The concentration of garlic in tea may not be the same as a more concentrated dose in the studies. In addition, cooking or boiling garlic also may change its therapeutic effects.

Potential Benefits of Garlic

Here are some of the rumored benefits of garlic, however keep in mind that some of these are not backed up by research:

• improves immune health
• prevents and treats cancer
• weight loss
• fight infections
• reduce cholesterol
• disinfect wounds
• treat vaginal yeast infections
• relief from mouth ulcers
• improves exercise performance
• treatment for atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries)
• wards off mosquitos

Research-Backed Benefits of Garlic

So, what does the scientific evidence say about garlic's benefits? According to Oregon State University, Linus Pauling Institute, garlic is a good source of organosulfur compounds, including alliinase, which is released when garlic is crushed or chopped. Organosulfur compounds are thought to provide certain health benefits.

A 2020 overview of 83 studies on garlic found that it shows promising health benefits, however the researchers caution that larger studies need to be done to confirm the results and verify the right dosage of garlic to get the results.

The current studies on garlic show the following possible benefits:

• Raw garlic may be beneficial in reducing high blood pressure.
  
• Some studies have also shown that garlic may be able to stimulate the immune system and decrease tumor growth in some cancers, such as colorectal cancer. But research investigating garlic's cancer-preventing power has provided mixed results.
  
• Garlic has antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties.
• An animal study found that garlic has antifungal properties as well.

Benefits of Honey and Lemon

The other ingredients of garlic tea, honey and lemon, also offer some benefits. Lemon is a good source of vitamin C. In addition, research found that it may help reduce blood pressure when combined with walking.

Honey is helpful in soothing cold and flu symptoms, including helping with coughs and congestion. It also is considered an antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antimicrobial.

Garlic Tea Side Effects

According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), garlic is probably safe for most people in typical amounts. Common side effects of consuming garlic include bad breath and body odor, and upset stomach. In addition to digestion issues, such as bloating and gas, garlic can also cause heartburn for some. It is possible to be allergic to garlic and people with a garlic allergy will experience more severe symptoms.

The NIH also advises that taking garlic may increase your risk of bleeding. If you take a blood thinner such as warfarin or if you will be undergoing surgery, discuss garlic supplements, garlic, or garlic tea with your healthcare provider before including it in your diet. Also, garlic has been found to interfere with the effectiveness of some drugs that are used to treat HIV infection.

Keep in mind that the lemon in garlic tea can cause tooth erosion, so it is a good idea to rinse your teeth after drinking it. In addition, the honey has a high sugar content so it is best to use sparingly or drink in moderation.