People with eye diseases such as glaucoma, cataracts, conjunctivitis, styes, and dry eye syndrome should best eat less garlic.
According to Traditional Chinese Medicine, long-term and excessive consumption of garlic can "damage the liver and harm the eyes." Therefore, patients with eye diseases should try to avoid eating garlic, especially those who are in poor health or have a deficiency of qi and blood. Otherwise, over time, symptoms such as decreased vision, tinnitus, a heavy head and light feet, and memory loss may occur.
Life Tip
In addition to eating less garlic, if you have an eye disease, it is best to eat more eye-nourishing foods. The occurrence of dry eye is related to vitamin A deficiency, so you should eat more foods rich in vitamin A, such as animal liver, eggs, and dairy products. In addition, carotene or carotenoids in foods such as carrots, tomatoes, and spinach can also be converted into vitamin A in the body. Some people have symptoms such as photophobia, excessive tearing, blurred vision, and easy eye fatigue, which are related to a deficiency of riboflavin and vitamin B1 in the body. They should eat more pig heart, lean meat, green vegetables, eggs, dairy products, beans, fish, and brown rice to supplement these nutrients. If you have conjunctivitis or a sty, you should eat more cooling fruits and vegetables such as mung beans, cucumbers, bananas, and winter melon.
II. Patients with Liver Disease
Many people eat garlic to prevent hepatitis, and some even continue to eat garlic daily after contracting it. This practice is extremely unfavorable for hepatitis patients because garlic has no effect on the hepatitis virus. On the contrary, certain components of garlic can irritate the stomach and intestines, inhibit the secretion of intestinal digestive juices, and thus aggravate various symptoms in hepatitis patients, such as nausea.
In addition, the volatile components in garlic can reduce red blood cells and hemoglobin in the blood and may cause anemia, which is not conducive to the treatment of hepatitis.
III. Some Patients with Diarrhea
When non-bacterial enteritis or diarrhea occurs, it is not advisable to eat raw garlic. Eating raw garlic again will stimulate the intestine with the spicy allicin, causing congestion and edema of the intestinal mucosa to worsen, promoting exudation, and aggravating the condition. If diarrhea has already occurred, eating garlic should be done with even more caution.
IV. Other Patients with Severe Illnesses
For healthy people, eating spicy foods such as garlic and chili is beneficial for maintaining long-term health. However, for patients with severe illnesses who are taking medication, these foods have obvious side effects. They can not only make the medication ineffective but may also have a chain reaction with the medication, putting the patient in danger. Other spicy foods that may have a chain reaction with medication include: ginger and fennel.