Black garlic is well-known for its anti-cholesterol and antioxidant properties, and is the subject of an unprecedented craze. But are you aware of the potential health risks? We take a look at the dangers and potential side effects of this famous natural ingredient.
Almost everyone is aware of the antioxidant and antibacterial benefits of fresh white garlic, but its pungent flavour and impact on breath severely restrict its consumption.
To overcome these unpleasant characteristics and improve its properties, several garlic derivatives have been developed, including black garlic.
This is not a particular variety of garlic (Allium), but the result of heat treatment: fresh garlic bulbs are heated to between 60-90°C under high humidity (50-95%) for many weeks, without any additional additives (1).
This heating process accelerates ageing through oxidation and crystallisation, transforming alliin and allicin to remove garlic's undesirable effects. It also gives the garlic a black colour (resulting from the Maillard reaction), a sweet and sour flavour, a syrupy texture and enhanced health benefits.
Developed in Japan in the early 2000s, black garlic has even more interesting properties than fresh garlic in several respects:
However, these benefits depend on the quality of the black garlic and processing variables such as time, temperature, humidity and pH. The black garlic extracts studied in the vast majority of scientific publications have been prepared under optimal, standardised conditions. It is therefore best to opt for reference black garlic supplements in capsule form (such as Organic ABG10+®, an organic extract prepared from garlic of European origin).
The scientific literature shows that consuming black garlic presents only one major health risk: botulism (a rare but serious paralytic disease, most often food-borne). However, the risk is zero when you use black garlic food supplements.
By contrast, the risk increases if you process fresh garlic into black garlic at home. Why is this? Botulism is caused by botulinum toxin (the most powerful of all neurotoxins known in nature). It is produced by several anaerobic bacteria of the genus Clostridium, which are regularly found in fresh garlic in a non-pathological state. You won't have any problems if you eat fresh garlic cloves that contain Clostridium. But by heating them for a long time at inappropriate temperatures (below 60°C), you encourage the germination of Clostridium spores and therefore the production of neurotoxins. This can happen when you prepare your black garlic in poorly ventilated or poorly sealed household appliances such as a slow cooker or rice cooker (4).
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), there are only 2 contraindications to eating black garlic:
Furthermore, the small quantities of black garlic consumed as part of the diet are unlikely to cause drug interactions. However, taking black garlic supplements may have an impact on the efficacy of certain substances:
It is imperative to consult a health professional before taking any black garlic supplements if you are already taking any of these treatments. There are no documented interactions with levothyroxine (Levothyrox), which is generally prescribed in cases of hypothyroidism or thyroidectomy.
While white garlic gives off a strong, unpleasant odour (which persists in breath, sweat and mother's milk), this isn't the case with black garlic, since the heat treatment breaks down the organosulphur compounds responsible for the odour: allicin and alliin. So taking black garlic supplements like Organic ABG10+® has no negative effect on those around you.
There have been rare reports of nausea and gastric discomfort associated with excessive supplementation or taking poor-quality supplements.
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