Baker's Best of Health

If you’re a garlic fan, then you already rely on the pungent bulb to add zesty flavor to your cooking. But did you know that garlic also has a big reputation for being able to cure whatever ails you? It’s true! In fact, garlic packs such a potent healing punch that you’ll find yourself reaching for it again and again. All that and terrific taste, too!

Here are five fantastic ways to use garlic for great health:

1.   Clear up nasal and sinus congestion in a hurry by tossing some chopped, raw, fresh garlic in a bowl of hot soup, and sipping to promote drainage.

2.   Treat a throbbing earache with a little concentrated garlic oil made from 1 sliced garlic clove in 2 teaspoons of olive oil, and heated for 2 minutes. Strain the mixture through cheesecloth, and elt it cool to lukewarm before dropping it into your aching ear.

3.   Keep biting, stinging insects away by frequently eating garlic during the summer.

4.   Stop athlete’s foot in its tracks by soaking your feet in garlic water. Crush several garlic cloves and drop them in to a tab of warm water with a splash of rubbing alcohol, then gently place your feet in the tub for about 10 minutes per day.

5.   Strengthen your nails with garlic oil. Prick the end of a garlic oil capsule with a pin, and gently squeeze a drop on each fingernail, rubbing it into the entire nail bed. Let it sit for 5 minutes, then wash your hands with warm water and gentle soap.