The Heart, Gut and Immune Solution

Black Garlic

Black garlic starts life as raw white garlic that has been 'slow-cooked' by fermentation over time in controlled conditions. This process transforms the cloves into soft, sweet, sticky black garlic. This 'aged' black garlic is more potent than raw white garlic and so offers more cardiovascular, immune and gut antioxidant-related benefits.

What Black Garlic can do for you?

Black Garlic is rich in antioxidants that gently support heart health and your immune system.

  • Helps maintain healthy blood pressure and circulation
  • Protects the cardiovascular system
  • Protects and supports your immune system
  • Helps protect the gut

The Science

Black Garlic is aged and fermented fresh garlic, which enhances its antioxidant capacity and bioavailability of key compounds such as S-allyl cysteine (SAC). It has been shown to support heart health by reducing blood pressure, improving cholesterol levels, and protecting blood vessels from oxidative stress. Its fermentation process also reduces the harshness of raw garlic, making it more tolerable for sensitive stomachs while preserving its immune-boosting and antimicrobial benefits. Black Garlic’s unique combination of potency and gentleness makes it a sophisticated addition to cardiovascular and immune health protocols.

Still unsure?

We’re all ears, get free expert advice from our pharmacists.

The Studies

"At The Naked Pharmacy, we ensure that all of our supplements are made with effective strength bioactives, so they are clinically proven to work.

We aim for each supplement to be scientifically supported by multiple randomised placebo-controlled studies. All clinical trial studies we use to support our supplements are undertaken on human patients, using the same dosage and formulation of the product. The scientific studies are published in peer review journals."

The scientific studies to support our claims on aged black garlic are published in the following peer review journals:

Study: The effect of aged garlic extract on blood pressure and other cardiovascular risk factors in uncontrolled hypertensives: the AGE at Heart trial by Ried K et al, 2016— RCT Randomised placebo controlled— Double Blind— 88 Human participants— P value: <0.001. 

What the study was about:

High blood pressure (hypertension) affects about 30% of adults worldwide and increases the risk of heart disease. This study tested whether aged garlic extract could help lower blood pressure and improve blood vessel health in people with uncontrolled high blood pressure.

How they did it:

88 adults with uncontrolled hypertension took either aged garlic extract (1.2 g daily) or a placebo for 12 weeks. The study measured their blood pressure, as well as other heart health markers like cholesterol and inflammation.

What they found:

On average, those taking aged garlic had their systolic blood pressure (the top number) reduced by 5 mmHg. In people who responded well, the drop was even bigger — about 11.5 mmHg systolic and 6.3 mmHg diastolic (bottom number) compared to placebo. Measures of blood flow and artery stiffness also tended to improve with garlic. Although other heart-related markers like cholesterol and inflammation showed positive trends, the changes were not statistically strong due to smaller sample sizes. The aged garlic was well tolerated and safe, even for people on blood thinners.

What it means:

Aged garlic extract can effectively lower both peripheral and central blood pressure in many people with uncontrolled hypertension. It may also improve artery health and reduce inflammation. It is safe and well tolerated, whether used alone or alongside other blood pressure medicines.

Study: Effects of an optimised aged garlic extract on cardiovascular disease risk factors in moderate hypercholesterolemic subjects by Valls RM et al., 2022-RCT Crossover Randomised Placebo Controlled-Double Blind-67 Human participants-DBP p=0.007.

What the study looked at:

Aged black garlic (ABG) is known to help improve some heart health risk factors. This study tested how effective a specially prepared ABG extract—with a consistent amount of a key active compound called S-allyl-L-cysteine (SAC)—is at improving blood pressure and other heart disease risk markers in people with moderately high cholesterol.

How the study was done:

67 people with moderately high “bad” cholesterol (LDL) took either ABG extract (250 mg per day, containing 1.25 mg SAC) or a placebo for 6 weeks. After a 3-week break, they switched groups in a double-blind, controlled design. Blood pressure and other heart risk factors were measured before and after each period.

What the study found:

After 6 weeks, those taking the ABG extract had a significant reduction in their diastolic blood pressure (the lower number in a blood pressure reading), dropping by almost 6 mmHg compared to placebo. This effect was especially noticeable in men with diastolic blood pressure above 75 mmHg.

What this means:

Taking this specific ABG extract daily helped lower the lower number of blood pressure, especially in men with moderately high cholesterol. These benefits may help people reach healthier blood pressure levels and reduce heart disease risk.

 

Study: Aged Garlic Extract Prevents a Decline of NK Cell Number and Activity in Patients with Advanced Cancer by Hideki Ishikawa et al.2006-Randomised double-blind controlled trial-50 Human participants- NK activity % P < 0.01 after 3 months compared with the value before treatment.

What the study was about:

Aged garlic extract (AGE) is known for its immune-boosting and antioxidant effects. This study looked at whether AGE could improve the immune system and quality of life (QOL) in patients with advanced cancers of the digestive system (like liver, pancreatic, or colon cancer).

How the study was done:

50 patients with these cancers were split into two groups. One group took AGE and the other took a placebo for 6 months. The researchers measured quality of life using a standard questionnaire and also checked immune function by looking at natural killer (NK) cells, which help fight cancer and infections.

What they found:

  • Quality of life did not improve in the group taking AGE compared to placebo.
  • However, the number and activity of NK cells increased significantly in the AGE group, showing a boost in immune function.
  • No side effects were reported in either group.

What this means:

Taking aged garlic extract helped strengthen an important part of the immune system in patients with advanced digestive cancers, but it did not improve their reported quality of life during the study period. It was safe and well tolerated.

Glossary of terms:

There are a few key terms to be aware of when reviewing these studies:

Randomised Clinical Trial

A clinical trial in which the participants are assigned randomly (by chance alone) to different treatments.

Double-blind study

A study in which neither the participants nor the experimenters know who is receiving a particular treatment. This procedure is utilised to prevent bias in research results.

Double-blind studies are particularly useful for preventing bias due to demand characteristics or the placebo effect.

P-value

The probability of obtaining the observed results of a test. The lower the p-value is, the more confident we can be of a true result. For example, a p- value of 0.001 confirms a result as 99.9% accurate.

Placebo

An inactive treatment used in a clinical trial, sometimes referred to as a “sugar pill”.

A placebo-controlled trial compares a new treatment with a placebo, in order to give greater confidence that the result is only due to the test/active ingredient.