Why is there a folk saying, "Eating meat without garlic is like losing half the nutrition"? Is there any scientific basis for this saying? Can adding garlic to meat really help us absorb more nutrients beneficial to our health? Since everyone has so many questions, let's listen to what the experts have to explain to us today.
One theory suggests that garlic can neutralize harmful components in meat, transform fats, and promote the absorption of its protein, so it's best to eat garlic with meat. This statement is an exaggeration and a misunderstanding of garlic's functions. Meat is rich in protein, fatty acids, and minerals, but garlic does not contain components that aid in the digestion and breakdown of these nutrients.
However, the saying "Eating meat without garlic, nutrition is halved" is not entirely baseless. Lean meat is an important source of B vitamins for us, and garlic can increase the absorption rate of vitamin B1 in meat. Vitamin B1 was the first B vitamin to be discovered. It is closely related to the function of the nervous system. A deficiency can lead to depression and slow thinking; a severe deficiency can cause peripheral neuritis, such as beriberi, and also increases the risk of sudden heart attacks.
There is also research showing that supplementing with vitamin B1 can improve postpartum depression. Nutritional surveys show that the intake of vitamin B1 among Chinese residents is decreasing. It is worth noting that its residence time in the human body is particularly short, and it is easily excreted with feces. Garlic contains alliin and alliinase. When garlic is crushed, these two substances come into contact to form the garlic we are familiar with, allicin. Allicin can bind with vitamin B1 in meat. This not only increases the absorption rate of vitamin B1 but also changes its water-soluble nature to a fat-soluble one, thereby prolonging its time in the body. Therefore, speaking more scientifically, "eating meat without garlic" means "less absorption of vitamin B1".
In addition to promoting the absorption of vitamin B1, allicin itself also has functions such as lowering blood lipids and preventing cancer. Moreover, eating some garlic with meat can also reduce the greasy feeling. Therefore, it is recommended to chew a few cloves of garlic when eating meat. It should be reminded that garlic is best eaten raw because allicin quickly loses its effect when heated, and it also becomes ineffective if it is too salty. However, it is worth emphasizing that the spiciness of garlic can irritate the gastric mucosa, so patients with gastric ulcers and acute or chronic gastritis should avoid eating it.