Neem Biotech has adopted garlic (Allium sativum) and artichoke (Cynara cardunculus) through the American Botanical Council’s (ABC) Adopt-an-Herb program. Through its adoptions of these two herbs, Neem Biotech helps ABC expand its non-profit educational mission and keep its unique HerbMedPro database updated with the latest scientific and clinical research on these botanical ingredients.

HerbMedPro is a comprehensive, interactive online database that provides access to important scientific and clinical research data on the uses and health effects of more than 265 herbs, spices, medicinal plants, and fungi.

According to Neem Biotech CEO Graham Dixon, although the company is now more active in mainstream pharmaceutical biotechnology research and development, “Neem Biotech has its roots in extracting bioactive compounds from natural products. Neem is pleased that its legacy interest in garlic and artichoke is being continued through the American Botanical Council’s Adopt-An-Herb program to help people live healthier lives through the responsible use of herbs and medicinal plants.”

ABC Founder and Executive Director Mark Blumenthal said: “ABC is deeply grateful to Neem Biotech for its generous adoptions of these two important medicinal herbs on ABC’s HerbMedPro database. Garlic has been one of the most popular herbal dietary supplements in the United States for more than 20 years and is used for a wide variety of clinically documented health benefits, while artichoke extracts are popular in Europe, where they are employed as an aid for various digestive conditions.”

Garlic
Native to Central Asia and the eastern Mediterranean, garlic, a member of the amaryllis family, has been used for millennia as food and medicine. The earliest known written record of garlic as a medicine is found in the Ebers Papyrus. This Egyptian medical document, dated to circa 1550 BCE, indicates that garlic bulb was used as a treatment for abnormal growths and abscesses, circulatory ailments, general malaise, and parasites. Garlic also was mentioned in the Bible as a source of food and in the Jewish Talmud as an aphrodisiac for married couples. In ancient Greece and Rome, evidence of garlic consumed as a fortifying tonic for athletes and warriors dates back to 1400 BCE. Greek physicians Hippocrates (ca. 460-370 BCE) and Dioscorides (ca. 40-90 CE) both wrote about the use of garlic for circulatory and pulmonary complaints. Garlic also became a staple of Asian medicine in India, China, and Japan as a digestion aid and for its antimicrobial activity.

Currently, garlic is well-known and studied for its cardiovascular benefits, particularly for lowering blood pressure, blood sugar, and cholesterol levels. Garlic bulb contains organosulfur compounds, which are believed to be partly responsible for garlic’s observed hypocholesterolemic and antioxidant effects.

The adoption page for garlic can be found here, and its HerbMedPro record is available here.

Artichoke
The artichoke plant is a large, spiny perennial member of the sunflower family that is native to the Mediterranean area and northern Africa. The primary medicinal part of the plant is the leaf, which is often prepared as an extract. Artichoke plants are a good source of the prebiotic fiber inulin, flavonoids, and phytosterols. In addition, artichoke contains sesquiterpene lactones, which give the plant its bitter taste. The first known written record of artichoke is found in the writings of Greek botanist Theophrastus (371-287 BCE), and Roman naturalist Pliny the Elder (23-79 CE) recommended artichoke for intestinal distress. Both the Greeks and the Romans used artichoke as a diuretic and choleretic (bile-producing agent that aids digestion). Other traditional uses of artichoke focus on liver health and as a digestive aid.

Modern research has shown that artichoke leaf extract supplementation is correlated with lower total cholesterol levels and positive effects on blood lipid composition. Artichoke leaf extract also has beneficial effects on digestive complaints.

The adoption page for artichoke can be found here, and its HerbMedPro record is available here.