Question about garlic extract.

jcp2

Community Veteran
I have read some of the posts about garlic extract and it mimicking the affects of HDL, does it increase HDL also. I am also wondering where you guys get it, or what brand seems to be the best. Also does it cause you to stink like garlic all day. This is not a area I am very familiar with so any help would be appreciated.
 
Not sure if it actually increases HDL.

No , tabs do not make you stink like garlic.

As far as brands and where, I just get what ever they have at the local pharmacy, usually 600 mg tabs & I take two a day.

Not sure if this is one of the posts you read about it, but here it is :
_____________________________________________________
According to the article from LEF posted by 42Npumpin garlic itself prevents arterial occlusion by the same mechanism as HDL .


I found this in this months (12/02) LEF publication at www.lef.org

Is Conventional Medicine Finally Catching Up?

...A few pages later in this same issue of JAMA, a startling new finding showed that garlic prevents arterial occlusion by the same mechanism as HDL-cholesterol.2,3,4 Previous studies demonstrated that garlic protects against arteriosclerosis, but it was not clear how it does so 5-11

One way arterial occlusion occurs is when LDL-cholesterol binds with molecules secreted from the inner lining of the artery, forming tiny plaques that can accumulate and harden. HDL-cholesterol inhibits this process by absorbing excess plaque-forming molecules.12,13

According to the JAMA report, garlic extract works the same way as HDL cholesterol, but more potently. The researchers who conducted the study stated that, in concentrations relative to man, "garlic extract was 2.5 times more effective in inhibiting plaque formation than was HDL-cholesterol."

What the JAMA authors did not discuss was the positive impact that high-HDL confers on longevity. A common trait of people living to age 100 is high levels of HDL-cholesterol in their blood.14 It is not easy, however, to significantly elevate HDL levels. Even with the proper drugs and supplements, it is extremely difficult to raise HDL more than 27%. In some people, it is hard to get HDL levels to nudge upward at all. The fact that garlic extract was shown to be 2.5 times more effective in inhibiting arterial plaque formation than HDL represents a potential breakthrough in the prevention of the most common disease afflicting civilized man, i.e. plugged-up arteries.

The JAMA editors cautioned against supplementing with garlic because the potencies of active constituents vary so greatly between brands. Life Extension does not agree with this position based upon the fact that standardized aged-garlic extract under the Kyolic brand name is readily available to consumers. Previous studies confirm the protective effect of Kyolic garlic extract on the arterial wall.5,8

The best news is that the Kyolic company has finally come out with a high-potency caplet that enables most people to swallow just one a day to obtain 1000 mg of standardized aged garlic extract. For more than a decade, Life Extension had asked the makers of Kyolic for a high-potency supplement so that users would not have to swallow so many capsules. Based on the research reports we have reviewed, it would appear that one 1000 mg Kyolic caplet should be taken for every 1.1 pounds of food eaten a day...

For longer life,

William Faloon

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

References

1. JAMA, September 18, 2002, 288(11):1342.

2. Garlic Prevents Plaque, JAMA, September 18, 2002, 285(11): 1342.

3. Siegel, et. al., Effect of Garlic on Arteriosclerosis, presentation at NIH workshop on herbs and heart disease, August 2002.

4. Siegel, G., A Primary Lesion Model for Arteriosclerosis Microplaque Formation, Int. J. Angiol, 2000, 9: 129-134.

5. Efendy et.al., The Effect of the Aged Garlic Extract, 'Kyolic', on the Development of Experimental Atheriosclerosis, Atherosclerosis, 1997, 132: 37-42.

6. Fogarty, M., Garlic's Potential Role in Reducing Heart Disease, BJCP, March/April 1993, 47(2): 64-65.

7. Campbell, JH et. al., Molecular Basis By Which Garlic Suppresses Atherosclerosis, J. of Nutrition, March 2001 Suppl, 131(3S): 1006S-1009S.

8. Borek, Antioxidant Health Effects of Aged Garlic Extract, J. of Nutrition, March 2001 Suppl., 131(3S): 1010S-1015S.

9. Lau, Benj., Suppression of LDL Oxidation by Garlic, J. of Nutrition, March 2001 Suppl., 131(3S): 985S-988S.

10. Slowing et. al., Study of Garlic Extracts and Fractions on Cholesterol-Fed Rats, J. of Nutrition, March 2001 Suppl., 131(3S): 994S-999S.

11. Ho et. al., S-Allyl Cysteine Reduces Oxidant Level in Cells Involved in the Atherogenic Process, Phytomedicine, 2001, 8(1): 39-46.

12. Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine, 15th ed., 2001, The Pathogenesis of Atherosclerosis, 1377-1382.

13. Stein, et. al., Internal Medicine, 1988, 1889.
 
I read that one, Is Kyolic a brand name and is it easily attainable or does it need to be ordered. Also would you recommend taking this with Niacin to try and increase HDL.
 
Not sure about Kyolic........

I was taking Flush Free Niacin alone before, and it defenitly raised my HDL, but I stopped after reading some studies that showed it was quite hard on the ol' liver. I haven't had my lipid profile done since I made the switch for Niacon to Garlic, so I can't help that way, but the Niacin got my HDL back into the normal range.
 
Some flush free/time released preparations do seem to cause hepatic toxicity more frequently than unmodified preparations, but that doesn't seem to be the case with inositol hexanicotinate...

Garlic will have little impact on your HDL.


Am J Med 1992 Jan;92(1):77-81 Related Articles, Links


Hepatic toxicity of unmodified and time-release preparations of niacin.

Rader JI, Calvert RJ, Hathcock JN.

Division of Nutrition, Food and Drug Administration, Washington, DC 20204.

Niacin (nicotinic acid) is used frequently in the treatment of hypercholesteremia. It is available in both unmodified and time-release preparations. The latter were developed in attempts to minimize the skin-flushing reaction that affects virtually all users and may limit acceptance. Adverse effects on the liver from both unmodified and time-release preparations have been recognized for many years. We reviewed the literature on the hepatic toxicity of both types of niacin preparations. Adverse reactions in six patients resulted from the exclusive use of unmodified niacin and in two patients from the exclusive use of time-release preparations. In 10 additional patients, adverse reactions developed after an abrupt change from unmodified to time-release preparations. Many of these patients were ingesting time-release niacin at doses well above the usual therapeutic doses currently recommended. Signs of liver toxicity developed in less than 7 days in four of these 10 patients. In doses that achieve equivalent reductions in serum lipids, hepatic toxicity occurred more frequently with time-release preparations than with unmodified preparations. An awareness of toxicity associated with ingestion of high doses of time-release niacin preparations is important because of their widespread availability and the potential for self-prescribed, unmonitored use.


..."Vitamin B3 (as nicotinamide) may be toxic in the range 3-6gm/d85. Niacin, as nicotinic acid, is generally considered less toxic40, but, still, in some individuals large doses of niacin have caused abnormal liver behaviour. Also niacin can cause an uncomfortable, although, as far as we know, harmless and temporary skin flushing. Taken as inositol hexanicotinate, which is generally regarded as non-toxic, unlike some other slow-release formulations73, removes this problem..."
 
inositol hexanicotinate can be picked up at the vitamin store, and what is the recommended dose for HDL lowereing.
 
I just didd some more reading on net, this then is not liver toxic like the flush niacin is. 3000mg will not cause me any problems, and would it be OK to take this on cycle.
 
You also asked about using SERMs to improve HDL @ CEM.

According to this review:

Selective Estrogen-Receptor Modulators — Mechanisms of Action and Application to Clinical Practice

B. Lawrence Riggs, M.D., and Lynn C. Hartmann, M.

.. only Toremifene increases HDL.



In this study tamox. decreased HDL by 5%, while Toremifene increased it by 14%:

http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content-nw/full/348/7/618/T5




Here's one tamox study performed on men:

A slight decrease of LDL & HDL was noticed.

Effects of tamoxifen on lipid profile and coagulation parameters in male patients with pubertal gynecomastia.

Novoa FJ, Boronat M, Carrillo A, Tapia M, Diaz-Cremades J, Chirino R.

Department of Endocrinology, Hospital Universitario Insular, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain. jnovoa@cicei.ulpgc.es

BACKGROUND/AIM: The estrogenic actions of tamoxifen on lipid profiles and hemostasis have been extensively demonstrated in women. Due to limited experience with this drug in males, it is uncertain whether these effects are also present in men. The aim of our study was to assess the response of blood lipids, lipoproteins, and coagulation parameters in a group of men taking tamoxifen. METHODS: We studied 15 healthy boys with pubertal gynecomastia who were given 10 mg tamoxifen per day. Total testosterone, sex-hormone-binding globulin, estradiol, serum lipids, apolipoprotein B, apolipoprotein A-I, lipoprotein(a), fibrinogen, antithrombin III, von Willebrand factor, and markers of activated coagulation and fibrinolysis were determined at baseline and 1 and 3 months after beginning of the tamoxifen treatment. RESULTS: Total cholesterol and lipoprotein(a) showed moderate but significant decreases from baseline. Low-density lipoprotein and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol concentrations as well as triglyceride and apolipoprotein B levels became lower, but these changes were not statistically significant. Among clotting parameters, antithrombin III was reduced, and von Willebrand factor increased significantly. Markers of activated coagulation and fibrinolysis remained unchanged throughout the period of therapy. CONCLUSIONS: The effects of tamoxifen on blood lipids and hemostasis we found in this group of healthy young men were qualitatively similar, but lesser than those previously described in women. Copyright 2002 S. Karger AG, Basel
 
jcp2 said:
I just didd some more reading on net, this then is not liver toxic like the flush niacin is. 3000mg will not cause me any problems, and would it be OK to take this on cycle.

It shouldn't cause you any problems, you can use it while on.
 
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