ORIGINAL INVESTIGATION Effect of Raw Garlic vs Commercial Garlic Supplements on Plasma Lipid Concentrations in Adults With Moderate Hypercholesterolemia A Randomized Clinical

Background: Garlic is widely promoted as a cholesterol-lowering agent, but efficacy studies have produced con-flicting results. Garlic supplements differ in bioavailabil-ity of key phytochemicals. We evaluated the effect of raw garlic and 2 commonly used garlic supplements on cho-lesterol concentrations in adults with moderate hyper-cholesterolemia. Methods: In this parallel-design trial, 192 adults with low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) concentra-tions of 130 to 190 mg/dL (3.36-4.91 mmol/L) were ran-domly assigned to 1 of the following 4 treatment arms: raw garlic, powdered garlic supplement, aged garlic ex-tract supplement, or placebo. Garlic product doses equiva-lent to an average-sized garlic clove were consumed 6 d/wk for 6 months. The primary study outcome was LDL-