“Eat noodles without garlic, half the flavor”. Sichuan’s garlic white meat, Hainan’s garlic vermicelli shrimp, Shaanxi’s garlic dipping noodles… Garlic occupies an important position in “China on the tip of the tongue” and has made countless Chinese delicacies.
It is no exaggeration to say that the relationship between Chinese and garlic has a history of thousands of years. In “Erya Wings” written by Luo Yuan in the Song Dynasty, there is a saying that “Hu people use garlic to coat their bodies, love its fragrance, and protect the cold” (The “garlic” scented perfume is really unique. ), and Li Shizhen, a medical scientist in the Ming Dynasty, summed up the effect of garlic as “unblocking the five internal organs, reaching all orifices, eliminating cold and dampness, warding off evil, reducing swelling and pain, and dissolving accumulated meat”.
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Anyone who has eaten garlic has such an experience, and it is easy to talk to others after a meal Cover your mouth. It is the unique spiciness of garlic that polarizes attitudes towards it. So from the point of view of modern medicine, is there any health benefit to this love-hate garlic?
A 22-year randomized controlled study conducted by You Weicheng, Dean of Peking University School of Clinical Oncology The trial(RCT), which evaluated the effects of H. pylori treatment, vitamin supplementation, and garlic supplementation on gastric cancer prevention, showed:lasting 7 years Garlic supplement intake was associated with a reduced risk of death from gastric cancer, with similar effects to two weeks of H. pylori treatment and seven years of vitamin supplement intake, but not a reduced incidence of gastric cancer. The research paper was published in BMJ.
Shandong Linqu County is one of the regions with the highest gastric cancer mortality rates in the world. During 1980-1982, the gastric cancer mortality rate was 55/100,000 for men and 19/100,000 for women (age adjusted). In 1995, researchers recruited volunteers in Linqu County. After screening for inclusion criteria, a total of 3365 volunteers from areas with high incidence of gastric cancer were finally included as RCT test subjects.
The age distribution of 3365 subjects was 35-64 years old. Among them, 2258 subjects who were seropositive for Helicobacter pylori antibody were randomly assigned to three interventions or placebo group, the three interventions were Helicobacter pylori treatment group, vitamin supplementation group and garlic supplementation group; 1,107 Helicobacter pylori-negative subjects were also randomly assigned to vitamin supplementation, garlic supplementation, or placebo.
The situation of each group is as follows:
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After 22.3 from 1995 to 2017 After one year of follow-up, among all 3365 subjects, there were 151 gastric cancer patients and 94 gastric cancer deaths. Among them, 79% of gastric cancer patients and 81% of gastric cancer deaths were from people with H. pylori positive at baseline.
H. pylori treatment and intake of vitamin supplements can significantly reduce the risk of stomach cancer. After multivariate adjustment, participants who received H. pylori had a 52% lower risk of gastric cancer than the control group(P<0.001). The risk of gastric cancer was 36% lower than that of the control group(P=0.02). In terms of the proportion of stomach cancer, the participants who ingested garlic supplements were slightly less than those in the control group, but the difference was not significant.
p>From the perspective of gastric cancer mortality, the three interventions were all protective factors, with statistical significance.Helicobacter pylori treatment can reduce gastric cancer mortality 38%, vitamin supplement intake decreased by 52%, and garlic supplement intake decreased by 34%.However, none of the three interventions were found to be associated with death from other cancers or cardiovascular disease.< /span>
Further Kaplan-Meier curves showed that H. pylori treatment and intake of vitamin supplements The reduction in gastric cancer mortality became more pronounced after about 8 years and after about 12 years with garlic supplementation.
But the researchers also said that the three interventions were compared in reducing the risk of gastric cancer incidence and death. found that there was no significant heterogeneity among the three methods. In other words, the onset of garlic supplementation may be slower, but the effect is gradually obvious and can persist for 22 years!< /span>
In conclusion,this study found that 2 weeks of H. pylori treatment And vitamin supplement intake for 7 years can significantly reduce the risk of gastric cancer incidence and death, and maintain The protective effect exists for a long time. Ingestion of garlic supplements does not significantly reduce the risk of gastric cancer in patients, but it can significantly reduce the risk of death from gastric cancer.
In addition, a new study published by Prof. Weicheng You’s team on JAMA Network Open 1 year later , a comprehensive analysis of the gastric cancer of the subjects was performed after including lifestyle. The results showed that in people who never drank, the protective effect of consuming garlic supplements was more significant, with a 67% reduction in the risk of death from gastric cancer compared with the control group!
The author of this study stated at the end of the paper that at present, the treatment of Helicobacter pylori is a more effective treatment. The methods of preventing gastric cancer cannot completely eliminate the occurrence of gastric cancer, and may also lead to the development of drug resistance in strains. Vitamin and garlic supplements have potential value in reducing the risk of gastric cancer incidence and death. Although slow and may take years to make an impact, it is a low-cost and safe and effective measure in the long run.
Of course, this study leaves some unanswered questions. For example, can eating garlic alone have an effect similar to that of garlic capsules? How much garlic to eat a day can be equivalent to it? How to eat this garlic? Wait wait, more research is needed to answer.
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