THE HEALING WONDERS OF GARLIC & VINEGAR

Nature's miracle healing combination of garlic and apple cider vinegar can melt ugly bulges fast, control killer cholesterol, prevent heart disease and soothe away the aching pain of arthritis. Yes, they are being hailed as one of nature's miracle weapons in the ongoing medical battles with arthritis, cancer and heart disease.

And the potent garlic can be doubly effective when it is served up with apple cider vinegar, also praised by researchers as a powerful antidote for all kinds of illnesses.

A Weekly World News in-depth survey of medical researchers, herbalists, and health and nutrition journals has come up with dozens of useful garlic and vinegar facts, plus some fascinating prescriptions for good health. Here they are in alphabetical order:

ARTHRITIS:

Chop the cloves from two large heads of peeled garlic and let them stand for five minutes in a cup of warmed olive oil. Soak a thick sock in warm water, then wring it out. Fill the toe of the sock with the garlic mash and a little oil. Gently rub the poultice over aching areas for several minutes. You can also find relief by boiling garlic in a vegetable broth and sipping it slowly.

Apple cider vinegar (one teaspoonful) with a teaspoonful of honey, mixed in water and drunk morning and evening, also soothes arthritic pain.

ASTHMA:

A popular folk remedy for asthma is one or two cloves of garlic, with a spoonful of apple cider vinegar and honey each morning - on an empty stomach.

ATHLETES FOOT:

Apply a clove of garlic to the infected foot area nightly for half an hour, then wash with water. Your problem should be cleared up within a week.

BLADDER INFECTIONS:

A teaspoon of garlic juice is effective in killing off the bacteria responsible for many women's bladder infections.

BURNS:

Puncturing a garlic oil capsule and squeezing it on to a skin burn area speeds up the healing process.

CANCER:

For many years the National Cancer Institute has been studying how common foods can help safeguard against cancer - and garlic figures high on their research list.

It is in a food group that contains phytochemical compounds that researchers believe can inhibit cancer growth. Eating garlic, onions, scallions, and chives can reduce your risk of getting stomach cancer, according to a joint study by Chinese researchers and America's own National Cancer Institute. Their research found that healthy patients ate 42 pounds of garlic and other bulb vegetables a year, compared to only 34 pounds for its cancer victims.

Deadly colon cancer may be prevented by a substance in garlic called diallyl sulfide, found by researchers at University of Texas M.D. Anderson Hospital to be 75 percent effective in fighting off the disease in animal tests.

CANKER SORES:

Salad rich in garlic and onions, washed down with red raspberry tea, is an effective way of clearing up painful canker sores.

CHOLESTEROL:

Cholesterol levels in healthy test patients dropped on average from 237.4 to 221.4 in a mere three hours when they were given 50 grams of garlic along with four ounces of butter, proving that the dangerous effects of fatty foods can be controlled by adding garlic to your diet.

COLDS:

An old Russian remedy is to wedge a clove of garlic in your jaw between your teeth and your cheek like a wad of tobacco. Do not chew it. Colds have been known to vanish within hours using this technique. Follow this up with a mixture of apple cider vinegar and honey (a quarter cup of each) - particularly if you have a sore throat.

DIABETES:

If you're looking for a tasty diet which safeguards your health at the same time, look no further than a diet based on garlic, beans and rice, says New York nutritionist Dr. Charles Klein. As well as thinning your blood and improving circulation, these natural foods in combination are also effective in warding off diabetes.