The Effect of Garlic Capsule on the Prevention of Preeclampsia in High-risk Turkmen Pregnant Women

The current study aimed at evaluating the efficacy of garlic capsules in reducing the risk of preeclampsia in high-risk Turkmen pregnant women in Golestan Province, Iran.

The current double-blind, randomized, clinical trial was performed in Islamic Azad University, Pharmaceutical Sciences Branch and health centers of Golestan Province. Primigravid pregnant women who were high-risk for preeclampsia, with a first-degree family history of preeclampsia, were enrolled in the study. A total of 112 participants were randomly allocated into the groups receiving either garlic capsules (800 mg/day) or placebo for two months (from 28th to 36th weeks of gestation) and the outcomes between the two groups were compared during the study. Pregnancy outcomes included high systolic and diastolic blood pressures, increased level of fasting blood sugar, and weight gain. The outcomes were measured at three time points: at the beginning of the study, as well as one and two months after the intervention.

Using repeated measurement analysis, no significant different was found between the two garlic and placebo groups in terms of changes in the systolic blood pressure, one and two months after the intervention (P > 0.05). There was also no significant difference between the two groups over the follow-up period in terms of the diastolic blood pressure (P = 0.602).

It seems that administration of garlic capsules during the pregnancy had no effect on the systolic and diastolic blood pressure changes in patients with a positive family history of preeclampsia.