A home remedy spreading on TikTok ahead of cold and flu season, raw garlic cloves left to ferment in honey at room temperature, can create conditions for botulism, a rare but serious illness, according to food safety experts and Health Canada. The warning gained wide attention this week after a Scientific American report on the trend found dozens of videos promoting the mixture as a natural antibiotic and detox drink.

"Fermenting garlic in unpasteurized honey at room temperature can pose a risk of botulism," Karine LeBlanc, a spokesperson for Health Canada, told the magazine.

The concern is practical, not theoretical. The ingredients are common in American kitchens, the recipes are simple, and many videos encourage people to keep jars at room temperature for weeks. Infants, and anyone feeding homemade remedies to young children, face particular risk.

A Soil Bacterium Meets a Sealed Jar

Botulism is caused by a toxin made by Clostridium botulinum, a bacterium found in soil around the world, according to the National Library of Medicine's MedlinePlus guide to botulism. The bacteria survive as hardy spores, which are harmless in most everyday situations. Under the wrong conditions, such as improperly preserved food with little oxygen, those spores can become active and produce toxin.

Spores in soil can contaminate vegetables in the field, and bees can pick them up from flowers or soil and carry them into honey, according to an Ohio State University Extension fact sheet. Neither garlic nor honey is dangerous on its own in ordinary use. The issue is what can happen when the two are sealed together and left out.

Joy Waite-Cusic, a food safety professor at Oregon State University, told Scientific American that the honey can pull water out of the garlic, and bacteria can then begin to multiply. She laid out the same reasoning in a 2023 Ask Extension answer to a home cook. Garlic is low in acid, with a pH well above 4.6, the threshold commonly used for botulism safety. Honey contains very little available water, but garlic contains a lot, creating a boundary between the two where the bacteria can grow.

There is not enough data to show the process is safe, she wrote, adding: "I am not comfortable with the safety of garlic fermented in honey."

Who Faces the Greatest Risk

Babies under 1 year old face a distinct danger. Health authorities advise that infants should not be given honey or foods containing honey, because spores can grow in a baby's intestines and cause infant botulism. A garlic-honey mixture offered to a baby as a cold remedy carries that risk on top of the storage concern.

The experts' concern centers on jars kept at room temperature for long periods, so large batches stored for weeks, or old jars topped up with fresh garlic, keep the mixture in the conditions they warn about. People who rely on the mixture in place of medical care face a separate risk. Scientific American noted that garlic fermented in honey is not a substitute for antibiotic or antiviral medication.

Some creators claim that fermentation makes the jar too acidic for botulism, and others recommend home pH strips. Food scientists have not validated those methods for this product, and Waite-Cusic stressed that the lack of safety data is itself the problem.

Symptoms That Require Immediate Care

The onset of foodborne botulism is usually 18 to 36 hours after eating contaminated food, although it can be as soon as four hours or as long as eight days, according to Ohio State University Extension. In adults, symptoms can resemble those of a stroke and include difficulty swallowing, speaking, or breathing and double vision. In infants, signs include constipation, muscle weakness, breathing problems, and loss of head control, sometimes called floppy baby.

Botulism is a medical emergency. Anyone with these symptoms after eating a home-preserved food should call 911 or go to an emergency room. The national Poison Help line, 1-800-222-1222, can also advise. The CDC's botulism information page explains how the illness is diagnosed and treated.

The toxin cannot be seen, smelled, or tasted, so a jar that looks and smells normal can still be unsafe. A bulging lid, a leaking jar, or a foamy or foul-smelling product is a reason to throw it away without tasting it.

Separating the Remedy From the Risk

The sources reviewed for this article did not document a confirmed botulism case tied to the TikTok trend. The warnings describe a risk based on how the bacterium behaves, not an outbreak. Botulism remains rare in the United States, and home-canned foods have historically been the most common source of foodborne cases.

Rare does not mean negligible when an illness can paralyze breathing muscles. Food safety specialists treat garlic or herbs stored in oil as a known concern for a similar reason, which is why they advise refrigerating such mixtures and making only what will be used within a few days.

Waite-Cusic told Scientific American that people could get more benefit from garlic and honey by skipping fermentation and eating them as they are. "You actually have the best antioxidant potential if they're both raw," she said.

Safer Choices for Cold and Flu Season

Anyone who already has a jar of garlic fermented in honey should not taste it to check it. Food safety specialists generally advise discarding a home product of uncertain safety. People who want garlic and honey together can combine small amounts and eat them right away rather than storing the mixture at room temperature.

Parents should keep all honey, including honey-based home remedies, away from children younger than 1. Anyone with a persistent fever, worsening cough, or breathing difficulty should contact a health care provider rather than relying on a home preparation.

Local cooperative extension offices, which operate in every state through land-grant universities, answer home food preservation questions. The bottom line is straightforward: this trend pairs two ordinary foods in a way food scientists cannot vouch for, and the safest version of the remedy is one that never sits on the shelf.

What Readers Want to Know

What is the fermented garlic honey trend?

TikTok creators are sharing recipes that leave raw garlic cloves in honey at room temperature for days or weeks, promoting the mixture as an immune booster and natural antibiotic.

Why can garlic in honey cause botulism?

Both ingredients can carry Clostridium botulinum spores. Food scientists say honey can draw water from low-acid garlic, creating a moist, low-oxygen boundary where the bacteria may grow and make toxin.

Has anyone gotten sick from this trend?

The sources reviewed for this article did not document a confirmed case tied to the trend. Experts are warning about the risk based on how the bacterium behaves.

What are the symptoms of botulism?

Symptoms usually start 18 to 36 hours after eating contaminated food and can include double vision, trouble swallowing, speaking, or breathing, and spreading muscle weakness.

Can babies have garlic honey?

No. Honey should not be given to infants under 1 year old because of the risk of infant botulism.

What should I do with a jar I already made?

Do not taste it to test it. Experts generally advise discarding home products of uncertain safety, and anyone with symptoms should seek emergency care.