An Overview on Therapeutic Effects of Garlic and Onion in Traditional Medicine and Islamic Narrations

In the recent decades, medicinal plants have become the most attractive medical issues, which produces numerous natural materials. Some of them have therapeutic effects, while the others are associated with several adverse effects. In Quran, 16 plants and fruits, such as garlic (Allium sativum) and onion (Allium cepa) are directly and indirectly cited. Furthermore, the nutritional and therapeutic properties of these plants are mentioned in the Islamic narrations and traditional medicine. This study aimed to review confirmed pharmaceutical and biological features of these plants. In this non-systematic review, data were collected using convenient scientific databases, such as Google Scholar, PubMed, Scopus, Iranmedex, Magiran, Ovid, and ISI, in addition to Quran, Islamic narrations, and valid books about herbal medicine. Nowadays, the therapeutic effects of onion and garlic are discovered, which confirmed the hypothesis of traditional medicine and Islamic narrations about these plants. The extracts of these plants affect the cardiovascular diseases due to reducing the plasma lipid and homocysteine levels, as well as being antihypertensive, antithrombotic, and antidiabetic. Additionally, they act as antibiotics (against viral, bacterial, fungal, and parasital), anti-cancers, anti-inflammatories, anti-metabolic diseases, and antiemetics. Moreover, these plants play an important role in promoting the immune system and affect the adverse effects of chemotherapy, such as nausea and vomiting. Therefore, it is recommended to add these plants or their products to daily diet.