The Antifungal Efficacy of Pure Garlic, Onion, and Lemon Extracts Against Candida albicans

Introduction: The oral cavity is considered to be one of the most intricate environments in the human body. It is known to harbor commensal microorganisms that do not cause diseases, such as Candida albicans, a yeast fungus that has a carriage rate that tends to increase with age. It is worth noting that C. albicans can be readily identified within the flora of the gastrointestinal tract in 80% of healthy patients. Traditional medicine has alternatively been shown to play a key role in various health amenities with a wide spectrum anti-microbial effect against various yeast molds. Objectives: To evaluate the antifungal efficacy of pure garlic, onion, and lemon juice extracts against C. albicans. Materials and methods: C. albicans (ATCC 10231) were sub-cultured in brain agar followed by anaerobic incubation for 48 hours at 37 degrees C. Ten plates were used for each of the materials studied to evaluate their antifungal efficacy against C. albicans. The efficiency of commercially available fresh garlic, onion, and lemon was tested in isolation against C. albicans. One-way ANOVA and chi-square were used for comparison between the different materials. The inhibition zone was measured, and the level of statistical significance was set at <= 0.05. Results: The diameter of inhibition zones has been measured along the vertical and horizontal axis. No inhibition zones were observed for the onion and lemon extracts used in this study whereas the garlic extract exhibited inhibition zones with altered sizes (4.89 +/- 0.275). A highly significant difference was observed between groups (P = 0.000) and between garlic and the other materials (P = 0.000). Conclusions: Pure garlic showed a highly significant antifungal efficacy when compared to the onion and lemon juice extracts against C. albicans. Further studies are needed using different concentrations of onion, lemon, and lemon peel juice to confirm their antifungal efficacy in addition to their actual antimicrobial benefits.