Garlic (Allium sativum) · Herb Profile

At a glance

Botanical name: Allium sativum
Family: Amaryllidaceae
Part used: Bulb
Taste: Pungent
Temperature: Hot
Moisture: Dry

On moisture, the old sources disagree: Culpeper (1653) and Salmon (1710) read it as dry; Bhavaprakasha (16th c.) and Rajanighantu (c. 15th c.) read it as moist. The app keeps dry, the modern reading of what the herb does in the body; the old readings are shown here but do not change it.

Safety at a glance

In pregnancy

Culinary safe; may affect milk flavor/colic

While breastfeeding

Small culinary amounts safe; infant may dislike flavor transfer but this is not a safety issue. Avoid large medicinal doses without practitioner.

For children

Culinary safe; concentrated supplements avoid under 12

Cautions

Avoid pre-surgery (anticoagulant); caution with active peptic ulcer

General contraindications

Culinary safe; avoid concentrated supplements

Stewardship

Garlic is globally cultivated; one of the oldest medicinal and culinary plants. Stewardship: the 'stinking rose' of scripture (Num 11:5) — God provides pungent medicine in daily bread.

In the traditional record

Garlic — referenced in Numbers 11:5 as food the Israelites longed for in Egypt; documented in Ebers Papyrus (1550 BCE) for 22 remedies

Which herbs suit your body?

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Educational use

The Apothecary is educational and does not constitute medical advice. Nothing here is intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider before changing what you take, especially if you are pregnant, nursing, taking medication, or managing a diagnosed condition.

On our sources

These entries draw on public-domain materia medica, most of it published before 1900, alongside a smaller number of modern reference works. Energetic qualities such as warming, cooling, drying and moistening are a traditional framework for describing how a plant behaves in the body, not a laboratory measurement. Where a period source states one, we cite it. Where none does, and for many North American herbs none exists, the value reflects modern herbal consensus rather than a historical text. When we cannot support a caution with real evidence, we say nothing rather than guess.