Garlic Power
That Smelly Bulb in Your Kitchen Is Actually a Tiny Pharmacy Part 1 of 2 It's scientific name is allium sativum. You know that papery little bulb that's been sitting in your kitchen since who-knows-when? The one that makes your breath a social liability and your pasta worth eating? Turns out, it's kind of a big deal. Garlic — boring name, extraordinary résumé. Humans have been using it as both food and medicine for thousands of years. Ancient Egyptians fed it to pyramid workers. Greek olympians ate it before competition. Medieval Europeans hung it over doorways (okay, that one was more about vampires, but still). Modern science has been playing catch-up ever since, and what researchers keep finding is this: those old-timers were onto something. garlic flying high The real magic comes from a compound called allicin — a sulfur-based molecule that forms when you crush or chop a garlic clove. That sharp, pungent smell? That's allicin saying hello. And also doing ...