Garlic is a favored spice when it comes to enhancing the taste of meals. Its power to transform a bland dish into a delicious one with minimal effort is well-known. Thus, it’s understandable why many people have a constant yearning for it.
While it is expected, food cravings result from a variety of reasons. For example, garlic cravings could be due to your body’s need for nutrients. Or, your body could be acting out of hunger and stress, seeking relief from garlic’s savory flavor. Finally, you could be using garlic as comfort food.
Knowing the reasons for craving garlic is crucial because it helps you learn how to deal with the issue. This article discusses garlic cravings in greater detail to help you know how to handle them.
Why Do People Crave Garlic?
You can crave garlic for many reasons. First, if you’re a frequent garlic eater, you will likely desire more of it. Also, your body could need calcium, manganese, iron, selenium, zinc, vitamin B6, and vitamin C, which are the main nutrients in garlic.
Most likely, your body craves garlic because you have moved to a diet that excludes it. And so your taste buds cannot wait to take in the garlicky taste. Or you’re just stressed, and garlic is your comfort food. But, of course, it’s also possible that you are pregnant.
What’s the Science Behind Food Cravings?
Forget the lies. Food cravings aren’t all in the head. There are several psychological and physiological reasons for food cravings, including garlic. Here are the science-based reasons for garlic cravings:
Stress, Anxiety, or Sadness
Any of these conditions may lead to a spike in cortisol levels and drive your body to crave sweet foods. These kinds of food cravings are called comfort foods and include fast-food fats. The result is emotional eating.
Fatigue
When tired, the body develops food cravings to feel better. In that case, you could eat more calories to survive the day.
Low Blood Sugar
This can make you crave sweets and other foods with high sugar content. The idea is to supply the body with lots of sugar fast.
Hormonal Imbalance
Did you know that hormonal imbalance resulting from the time a woman gets periods or is pregnant also affects food cravings?
Dehydration
When dehydrated, the body tends to have certain food cravings due to its effect on the central nervous system.
Deficient Nutrition
Possibly, your body craves food when it isn’t getting enough nutrition. Such food cravings could be to supply the body with the missing nutrients.
Reasons for Craving Garlic
There are many reasons why you could be craving garlic, including the following:
1. The Need for Certain Nutrients
Garlic contains many nutrients, including zinc, selenium, manganese, iron, calcium, and Vitamin C. So, you could be craving garlic due to nutrition deficiency. Here is an analysis of the nutrients in garlic, according to the Nutrition Society:
Vitamin C
There is 2.8mg of vitamin C in three garlic cloves. With this Vitamin, your body can fight free radicals, enhance the immune system function, and build collagen.
Vitamin B6
From 100g of garlic, your body can be 1.235mg of vitamin B6. That’s 87% more than you can get from other foods. So eating 100g of garlic will supply your body with 95% of the vitamin B6 required to prevent depression, promote brain health, prevent and treat anemia, and reduce depression.
Calcium
You’ll get 16.3mg of calcium from a three-clove serving of calcium, an essential nutrient for building strong teeth and bones and adequately functioning muscles and the central nervous system.
Iron
Eating three cloves of garlic helps the body to absorb 0.2mg of iron. That’s useful in helping the body transport oxygen in the body. Iron is also valuable for helping your body produce energy for everyday functionality.
Manganese
In one garlic clove, you’ll get 0.15mg of manganese, which is helpful in blood clot formation when wounded. Also, your body can quickly form connective tissues. Manganese is also valuable for helping the body to metabolize amino acids, carbohydrates, glucose, and cholesterol.
Selenium
Selenium is a valuable antioxidant available in 0.4mg in one garlic clove. It is protective against heart disease and improves nail and hair growth.
Zinc
136g or 45 garlic cloves contain 1.58mg of zinc, enough to cover 14% of what you can get from a 2,000-calorie diet. Zinc helps speed up wound healing and reduce inflammation. It also supports immune function.
Garlic also contains carbohydrates. So, you could crave garlic due to a deficiency in carbohydrates and any of the above nutrients.
2. Frequent Garlic Consumption
According to scientific evidence, people are more likely to crave a portion of food they eat more frequently. So, if you find yourself craving garlic, it could be that you eat it frequently, and your body is missing it.
Possibly, you are addicted to garlic. Therefore, you will end up craving garlic more compulsively than you can handle. In addition, garlic contains opioid peptides than can cause this addition. So, to avoid getting addicted to the opioid peptides, you should moderate your garlic consumption.
3. Dieting
People on a low-calorie diet might have more than garlic cravings. Instead of craving garlic, they could require roasted garlic-topped pizza, garlic marinated steak, crusty garlic bread, garlicky sauce, or fast food fats.
So, if you are on a diet and cutting down on carbohydrates and calories, your body could crave certain foods with a garlic flavor. A good example is garlic marinated steak.
4. Feeling Stressed, Depressed, or Upset
If you’re craving garlic, you could be going through emotional distress. So, when stressed, you could end up craving comfort food. So, as you imbibe crusty garlic bread, garlic marinated steak, and roasted garlic-topped pizza, you might think you’re craving garlic.
Craving garlic or foods with a garlic flavor usually comes when you feel stressed, sad, or depressed. Eating garlic-y foods at that time indicates that your body is trying to self-medicate. Once you have eaten the food, your body will feel better.
5. Pregnancy
During pregnancy, the body undergoes chemical changes that may cause all kinds of food cravings. For example, pregnant women may crave garlic, ice cream, pickles, and virtually anything edible. However, craving garlic isn’t that weird.
If you’re craving garlic due to pregnancy, don’t worry. You will likely benefit a lot by eating lots of garlic. For example, garlic can strengthen the immune system as a result of containing many vitamins.
FAQs
What Are the Health Benefits of Garlic?
Garlic has many health benefits, including improving brain function by fighting free radicals. It also improves heart health, lowers blood cholesterol, reduces inflammation, and lowers blood sugar.
Should I Eat Garlic Every Day?
Yes, you should eat garlic every day but in moderation. One of two garlic cloves can provide all its health benefits. However, eating too much garlic can lead to addiction.
The Bottom Line
Craving garlic can be due to many reasons, including addiction, stress, or lower than normal nutrition. You can devise an appropriate solution depending on the reason for your garlic cravings.
Sources
https://www.livestrong.com/article/552505-what-does-it-mean-to-crave-garlic/
https://foodandfizz.com/why-people-crave-garlic/
https://www.cuisinecravings.com/why-am-i-craving-garlic/
https://www.2bstronger.com/article/diet-and-nutrition/what-does-it-mean-to-crave-garlic-52782.html